


Vacation, Meant to Be Spent Alone

by allmylovesatonce



Category: Red White & Royal Blue - Casey McQuiston
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, M/M, accidental vacation buddies
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-31
Updated: 2020-06-14
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:34:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 29,770
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23419069
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/allmylovesatonce/pseuds/allmylovesatonce
Summary: Alex has the perfect trip planned out for himself after his graduation. The last thing he expects is for his room to be double booked. The worst part of it all is that he'll be forced to share the room with his nemesis: Prince Henry of Wales.
Relationships: Alex Claremont-Diaz/Henry Fox-Mountchristen-Windsor
Comments: 137
Kudos: 397





	1. The Getaway

**Author's Note:**

> Starting a new story! Hope you enjoy!

Graduation is the day Alex has been looking forward to for a very long time. He is finished with school, against all odds. The last year has been especially crazy between his mother’s campaign, trying to finish school, and various First Son duties. Some duties have been fun — like going to voter drives for his mom’s campaign. Others have been not so fun — like going to the Royal Wedding last fall. He quite literally could not have cared less. He had been so tempted to march up to Prince Henry and just poke at his fake perfection. Somehow, he’d had the restraint not to. 

But now, it’s graduation and that means a small party with his family and friends and a reward to himself the week after. June is the one who planted it in his mind, but Alex eagerly ran with it. His trip to Hawaii by himself has been lingering in his mind for months. He knows June is the one who talked to his mom and Zahra to get him the time off from the campaign so he can go. Part of him wonders if it’s June’s way of getting him further away from the campaign. It’s mostly unspoken, but he knows how much she worries about him. There have been several disappointing looks when she spots him coming back from the campaign office well after dinnertime. 

He’s leaving for 10 days on Monday. Nora and June are laying on his bed after the graduation party, more or less helping him pack. Nora is, of course, giving humorous, but less than helpful advice. “I mean you have to pack at least  _ one _ Hawaiian shirt,” she demands. 

Alex rolls his eyes. “I don’t even own  _ one _ Hawaiian shirt!” He glances over at the two of them. “Also, is that not technically offensive?” 

Nora shrugs. “Probably. I just think you would look hilarious in one.” 

June nods in agreement. “Khaki shorts and a Hawaiian shirt. You’d look like a white suburban dad.” 

“I am none of those things.” Alex stuffs a pair of shorts in his suitcase. “Although, I am very good at grilling.” 

June laughs loudly. “Maybe that could be your new goal. Who needs politics?” 

Nora lays her head on June’s stomach as she adjusts her stance on the bed. “I would pay good money to see that. The mental image alone is hilarious.” Alex only glares at them before he resumes packing. 

“So what’s on your agenda for a 10 day long trip?” June asks. 

“Also, I can’t believe an extrovert like you is going to spend 10 days on your own,” Nora chirps. 

Alex shrugs. “Honestly, I’m kind of excited. I also have no problem going to a local bar and talking to people I don’t know.” 

“That’s definitely something you’re good at. Talking to people you don’t know has never been an issue for you,” Nora agrees. 

“Anyway…” June says, looking between the two of them. “What are you going to do?” 

“Hang out on the beach, drink, maybe go parasailing.” 

“How is that going to fill 10 days?” 

“I don’t know. I’ll climb a mountain or something. Go visit a volcano.” 

Both of them look at him with skeptical expressions. “It doesn’t sound like you really have your trip planned out,” June says in a small voice. 

“That’s kind of the beauty of it for me. I can do whatever I want,  _ whenever  _ I want. I don’t have to have this grand set schedule. It’s just like I can do what I feel like that day.” 

Nora nods appreciatively. “Okay, I respect that.” 

“You just can’t call us when you’re bored,” June pipes up. 

“I disagree,” Nora argues. “Well, really I just want you to call us with all the juicy parts of your trip.” 

Alex frowns. “I’m going on a trip by myself. Why do you think it’s going to be juicy?” 

Nora flashes him a look with a shrug. “I just have an inkling.” 

June looks a bit disgusted as she looks from Nora to Alex. “Don’t feel the need to call me with the gory details.” 

He grimaces. “Ew. I never would.” 

The three of them spend the rest of the evening together, even after Alex finishes packing. June yells at them every time they bring up the election. With an annoyed look, they always drop it. Nora jokingly tucks him in before they leave him to go to sleep. He has to be up early for his flight tomorrow. 

It feels like Christmas Eve night as a kid. Alex is too excited to sleep. He’s glad June pushed him to do this. He’d brushed her off at first, saying he liked being busy. But now, the idea of drinking on a beach and chilling the fuck out sounds pretty good too. Of course, there’s a 99% chance he’ll still try and work remotely for the campaign at least  _ some _ of the time. But he’s also excited to have some adventures and come back relaxed. Relaxed is not usually a common state for Alex. Pretty much the opposite. 

Maybe this is the kind of thing he needs. Maybe once in a while, he needs to just take a break and chill out. That’s probably what June is trying to get him to do. Thankfully, he had enough money saved to allow him to do this. Well, that and June may have conned his parents to chip in. Either way, it worked out and now Alex is going to spend 10 beautiful days in Hawaii without Zahra breathing down his neck, any assignments from his mom, and without WASPy Hunter being annoying as fuck. 

His trip there is uneventful. He’s flying commercial because his mother glared at him the time he joked about taking Air Force One. He’d quickly exited the room after that, lest he be subjected to another lecture that he doesn’t need. Cash is with him and everything has been going swimmingly. Only a few times have there been people staring at him. Each time, he’s looked away before they can ask for a picture. He’s trying to be a normal-ish person. 

Granted, a normal person doesn’t book the nicest suite in the hotel, but then again, he wants to use at least some of the perks of being the President’s son. 

The first person who greets him welcomes him with a large smile. He drags his suitcase in line with him and walks to the desk with Cash right behind him. “Hi, I’m Alex Claremont-Diaz, checking in.” He tries not to assume people just know who he is. He hates the people that do that. 

“Ah, Mr. Claremont-Diaz, you’ve arrived!” The woman’s smile hasn’t wavered, but there’s a note of nervousness in her voice. She’s clicking away on the computer, likely looking for his booking. He wants to tell her she doesn’t need to be nervous around him. He’s just a 22 year-old little shit. But of course, he doesn’t say that. “If you’ll give me one moment, sir, my colleague Sarah is going to be completing your check in today. Thank you so much for wanting to stay with us.” 

Alex is a bit confused, but rolls with it. 

Another woman approaches the desk, smiling the same as the one before her. “Welcome, Mr. Claremont-Diaz. We are so happy you chose our hotel for your vacation. As it is, there’s been a slight mixup with your room.” 

“Excuse me?” 

“I’m afraid it was double booked.” 

“Double booked?” Alex parrots, his voice growing louder. Cash taps him on the back, encouraging him to keep his cool. Alex holds up a hand in reply. 

“Yes, sir. As best as I can figure it out, the room was booked at the same time. One online, one over the phone.” Alex stares at her, wondering where she is going with this. “And as it stands, the other guest arrived before you.” 

“What? So I’m just out of a room? I paid for that room.” Alex is getting heated but he knows anyone could report that FSOTUS lost it on some kind hotel desk clerk and he’d be murdered by his mother. Or Zahra. Zahra would probably do it. Alex leans forward, his hands on the counter. “Look, is it possible I could meet this person? Maybe we could figure it out ourselves.” What Alex isn’t saying is that he wants to charm the person out of the room. He knows he could do it. 

The woman looks hesitant. Finally something shifts on her face. “Fine, I’ll take you up there. Maybe this will all be better if you can work it out amongst yourselves. I certainly wouldn’t want my staff to be involved.” 

“I promise, we won’t make any difficulties for your staff.” Alex wonders if she’s allowing him to go up to the room so they can fight it out in private. 

The ride up in the elevator is silent. Alex’s eyes keep bouncing between Cash and the hotel manager (as he’s found out is her position). Still silent, she leads them from the elevator and down the hall toward the suite Alex booked. 

With a gentle knock at the door, they wait for this other person to greet them. Alex bounces on his feet, wondering who is going to be inside. He’s still certain he can charm this person out of their room — male or female. 

The door opens and Alex is positively gobsmacked by the person on the other side. Before either of them can say anything, the manager launches into her explanation about how the room was double booked and how it is up to them to decide who gets the room. She looks between the guests with a knowing raise of a brow and finishes with, “I’d appreciate it if my staff could be treated fairly during this. It was a complete accident. But may I say, that it would look worse for you if you raised a fit over this than it would for us to have made this accident. Let me know what you decide.” And with that, she walks away. 

Suddenly, Alex realizes why they put her on the case. She’s intimidating enough to make sure the disgruntled guests don’t make a scene. 

Looking back from her, he takes a look at the person standing on the other side of the door. Neither of them look very pleased. 

“Hello, Alex.” 

Alex rolls his eyes, sighing. “Henry.” 

Without any further statements, he walks past Henry, making sure to bump him with his shoulder, and drags his suitcase inside the room. He doesn’t have any intention of being the one to leave. 


	2. The Standoff

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is just a fun story that popped into my head and is helping me through the anxiety of the world! I hope it can be a good distraction for you guys too!

“What are the odds of this?” Henry asks, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. 

Alex rolls his eyes, turning around to look at him. “I’m not seeing the humor in it quite yet.” Alex is pacing, running his hand through his hair. “Who even let you into my country?” 

Henry shakes his head at him. “I’m sorry I didn’t clear it with you first.” 

Alex groans in reply. “You are such an asshole.” He turns, staring Henry down. “So, I think you should leave.” 

Henry irritates him even further by laughing in reply. “And why would I do that?” 

“Because this is my hotel room.” 

“I believe the intimidating woman from moments before said it is  _ both  _ of our hotel room. So I have as much claim to it as you do. More actually.” 

“Why do you think that?” 

“Based on the holy schoolyard principle of ‘I was here first,’” Henry says with a smirk. 

Alex glowers at him, his fists balled at his sides. “Don’t act like you ever spent time on a damn schoolyard, you pretentious ass.” He huffs out a breath. Of all people, why did it have to be  _ him _ ? Alex is fairly certain he could have talked anyone else out of this room. But it has to be the annoyingly bland and yet somehow perfect looking Prince Henry. Even if Alex wanted to charm him out of the room, he’s too annoyed by Henry to try. It’s always been that way with him. Something stirs within Alex and he can’t sit still, he can’t  _ not _ go bother him. Trying to center himself and get back to convincing Henry the room is rightfully  _ Alex’s _ , he takes a deep breath and looks back at him. “What are you even doing here?” 

Henry unfolds his arms, throwing them up in the air. “What, I’m not allowed a holiday?” 

“Why do you even need a  _ holiday _ ?” Alex asks, mocking his accent. “You’ve been spending the last year of your life on a gap year.” 

He doesn’t even really realize what he’s said until Henry is giving him a strange look. “Why do you know that I’ve been on a gap year?” He’s staring Alex down, trying to read him. 

_ Fuck _ . Alex probably knows too much about his nemesis to get away with easily. He’s scrambling to come up with an acceptable answer. “Um, well June really likes tabloids.” Once the first sentence is sputtered out, the rest comes with more confidence. “And for whatever reason, they seem to care about what you do. I don’t, obviously. But June must have mentioned it. I don’t know why I’d know otherwise. Sorry that I’m not obsessed with you like everyone else.” 

Henry nods his head, a smug grin on his face. Alex wants to slap it off. “You know what, I think you are.” 

Alex chokes out a cough. “Fuck you.” He shakes his head and stalks toward Henry, stopping just in front of him. “Look, this is my room and I’m not giving it up.” 

“It’s also  _ my  _ room and  _ I’m _ not giving it up,” Henry retorts. 

“So what are we going to do? Just share?” Henry’s eyes go wide at his suggestion. “That was a joke.” 

“Well if you don’t feel comfortable sharing a room with me, feel free to go down to the desk and request a new room. Because I’m not leaving,” Henry informs him. He looks set in his decision. Alex hates everything. 

“Well I’m not leaving either. I guess we are sharing. Or seeing who will out-stubborn the other. I’ll warn you, I’m quite stubborn.” 

Henry closes his eyes and takes a breath. “That’s not surprising.” He takes a glance around the suite. Luckily, they both went for a big suite. “Fine, but I get the bed.” As Alex scoffs, Henry moves quickly on his annoyingly long legs and sits himself down on the bed, grinning at Alex rudely. 

Alex stomps over in his direction. “That’s not fair!” 

“What? There’s a couch. It’s not like I’m making you sleep on the floor.” 

He turns around and eyes the couch. It doesn’t look  _ un _ comfortable. But either way, he’s pissed at Henry. He can’t believe he has to spend his vacation trapped with Henry. It’s decided in a flash — Alex is going to spend next to no time in the room. 

Henry gets up and walks over to the small kitchen area. He fills up a glass and takes a drink of it, before turning around to face Alex. Instead of looking at him, Alex is staring at the bedroom. He wants the bed. He wonders if he can charm the bed away from him. “Wait a second, I have an idea!” Henry raises one eyebrow as he raises his glass to take another drink. “We should just share the bed.” 

The sound of coughing and choking drags Alex’s attention away from the bed. He glances over at Henry, seeing him bent over and his face beet red. He doesn’t know what prompts him, but something moves him from the couch, carries his feet over to Henry, and he’s clapping him on the back. “You okay?” he asks. Henry nods. “Look, I just meant they’ll change the sheets, so why not trade off who has the bed?” 

Henry takes a slower sip of his drink and nods. “Fine. Whatever.” 

Alex wanders away from Henry, scoping out the room. He walks to the balcony and takes a look at the view. Suddenly, the shit with Henry doesn’t really matter to him.  _ This _ is why he came to Hawaii. It’s gorgeous. In a flash, he’s grabbing clothes to change into and is leaving the complicated hotel room behind. Just because he’s sharing a room with Henry doesn’t mean he has to spend time with him. If it goes the way he plans, he won’t have to see him much, if at all. He doesn’t even acknowledge Henry as he’s leaving. The plan was to spend his trip by himself, and that’s still the plan. 

On his way to the beach, he gets stopped by the manager. He wants to be out in the sun, so he quickly explains that they know each other and agreed to make it work. His feet start to propel him forward, but he turns back around, asking the manager to keep things quiet. He’s not quite sure why he asked her that. All he knows is that if it got out that FSOTUS and the Prince of Wales were spending a vacation together  _ in the same room _ , well, someone would have an issue with that. Likely his mother’s opponent. 

Forgetting all about the situation, Alex spends the rest of his day relaxing on the beach. He drinks under a cabana when he’s not walking along the beach, enjoying the feeling of the sand under his feet and the sun on his back. It’s the bliss he’s been looking forward to. Somehow when he’s down here, it’s easy to forget all about Henry and the awkward situation awaiting him that evening. 

Eventually, he grows hungry and Alex wanders into the hotel restaurant, eager to get something to eat. Other days, he’s decided, he’ll go venture out for food. But right now, he’s hungry and he wants to eat  _ asap _ . He’s placed an order and is sitting at a table alone, reading an article about his mom’s campaign on his phone, when the chair across from him is pulled from the table. 

Alex looks up to see Henry sitting across from him. “The fuck do you think you’re doing?” 

Henry shrugs. “Well, seeing as you’re the only other person I know here, I thought I’d join you.” 

“Why? Didn’t you plan a week by yourself? Why do you suddenly need company?” 

He expects Henry to retort back, same as he had earlier each time Alex spoke. What he doesn’t expect is for hurt to flash across his face. Even worse, he doesn’t expect to feel bad about it. 

“Alright. I suppose I can go find another place to sit,” Henry says, starting to stand. 

“No, wait.” Alex stops him, holding out his hand. “You can sit here. It’s fine. I just…” He trails off. He’s unsure how to explain that sometimes he’s just an asshole. Taking a deep breath, he changes his tune. “It might be more enjoyable being able to talk to someone. Even if it’s you.” Because he’s Alex, he can’t let it all go. 

But somehow, it makes Henry smile just a bit. “Thank you.” Alex nods in reply. After Henry catches the waitress and places his order, he turns back to Alex. “So, what brings you here?” 

Alex’s first instinct is to remind him that it’s  _ his  _ country. But he swallows that comment. “It was June’s idea. A graduation gift to myself. My last graduation got a bit overshadowed by my mom’s election. Actually, this one kind of did too. I don’t mind, really. I love politics and I’m working on her campaign. But at the same time, it’s kind of nice to do something for me.” He takes a sip of his drink before glancing up to Henry again. “What about you?” 

“Kind of the same. Doing something for me.” 

“Yes, I can imagine taking a gap year is so stressful.” 

Something flickers in Henry’s eyes but he quickly shuts it down. “Well, it’s not quite as relaxing as you’d expect. It’s not a gap year from all responsibilities. It’s just a year to allow me to figure some things out.” 

Alex frowns, staring at him. “What kind of things does a prince need to figure out?” 

Henry rolls his eyes, looking down at his hands. “Not to sound all woe-is-me, but being a prince isn’t all sunshine and rainbows and doing whatever I want. It’s a lot of duty and responsibilities and following orders from people who don’t give a shit what you want for your own life.” He looks around nervously, ducking his head slightly. “But I didn’t say that.” 

Alex is surprised when he laughs. “I get it. I end up getting sent to do things I don’t really want to do. But it looks good to the public, so…” 

“What’s something agonizing that you’ve had to do in the name of duty?” Henry asks. 

He can’t suppress the grin spreading on his face as he replies. “Going to your brother’s wedding.” 

Henry laughs, blowing Alex away. “Well, I’d have to agree with you.” Alex laughs with him. It’s an odd interaction. For a split second, he wonders if he’s had Henry wrong all this time. But then he remembers the day they met and he reminds himself that, no, he’s probably right. This is just a strange occurrence. 

Alex goes against his plans and he and Henry spend the rest of the evening together. It’s a lot of asking questions, trying to figure the other one out. Alex is very interested in this new person he’s discovering. In his mind, Henry had been this boring, cardboard cutout of a person. But the person he’s witnessing now, talking about getting drunk with his friend, Pez, and writing an op ed piece on the policies of the crown under a different name. He assures Alex that they never did anything with it, but he was proud of it. It’s almost disorienting, trying to fit this Henry into the image he had of him before. Alex is fairly sure it’s a feeling that’s going to continue throughout the trip. 

* * *

Henry is a bit tipsy as they get back to their — he still can’t believe it — shared hotel room. Alex is laughing about some story he’s telling and Henry is barely listening. He’s been too focused on the set of Alex’s mouth as he smirks, or the way he thinks it would feel to run his fingers through Alex’s hair. It’s taken all his strength to keep his poker face. He’s had to practice it each time he’s ever been around Alex. The entire time at Philip’s wedding, Henry was dying, praying Alex wouldn’t wander over to him, secretly hoping that he  _ would _ . 

This trip was supposed to be a vacation from all the stress and expectations that have built up over the last year. Pez was too generous. 

But now, it’s all about Alex Claremont-Diaz. As if his mind wasn’t already stuck on him enough. He only hopes he can make it through the next nine days without making a fool of himself. Maybe Alex’s plan of spending their days apart is a better idea. And yet, he’s not sure what came over him this evening when he sat down across from Alex. He knew that Alex would likely be pissed about it, but he couldn’t stop himself. It was a flimsy excuse he’d given, but Henry could hardly admit that he just wanted to spend more time with Alex. 

That night, Henry lays in bed, looking through the door covered in sheer curtains to the room beyond. Alex is out there, still awake from the light shining. Henry wonders if he has as many issues sleeping as Henry does. It’s another flimsy excuse, but Henry wanders out toward the kitchen to get a glass of water for his bedside. By the light of the lamp, he takes in Alex, shields down, absorbed in something on his phone. He hasn’t even acknowledged that Henry’s there. For a short moment, Henry’s frozen, looking at the sight of him, shorts and no shirt, glasses on his face. As Alex starts to look up, Henry moves again, propelling himself toward the kitchen and his fake goal. 

“That bed comfy?” 

Henry looks over at him, debating between all the replies he could give. He decides the moment calls for cheeky. “Extremely. That couch comfy?” 

Alex shoots him an annoyed look. “You’ll see tomorrow.” 

Henry smirks to himself as he walks back toward his room. He pauses just in the doorway, looking back at Alex. “I didn’t know you wore glasses,” he says before he ducks back into his room and quickly closes the door behind him. 

There’s something about Alex that brings out the worst, most vulnerable side of him. He needs to lock it down before he ruins everything. 

But as he lays awake, ever the insomniac, he can’t help but let his mind wander to what it would be like to be here with Alex under different circumstances. He’s in too deep and he knows the next ten days are going to be hell. 


	3. The Confusion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks to those of you who are reading this one! I'm hoping to update somewhat regularly. It's a fun one to write!

When Alex wakes up the next morning, he’s the only one in the room. He doesn’t remember hearing Henry leave. Shrugging, he goes about his business and goes down to breakfast. Henry isn’t there either. He’d never admit it to anyone, but he almost misses the company as he eats breakfast alone. After he eats, he wanders out to the beach and pulls out his phone. It’s hours later in D.C. and he desperately needs to talk to Nora and June. They’d both ignored his calls yesterday. He hopes they won’t ignore him again today. 

“Hello?” June answers. 

“Oh thank God!” Alex says. “Why did you ignore me yesterday?” 

“Because you’re supposed to be enjoying your vacation and not just calling us.” 

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, well I was calling for a reason, Juniper!” 

“Not my name.” 

“Whatever!” Alex yells with a groan. 

“Is that Alex?” he hears Nora say. 

“Yep. He’s so bored all alone.” 

“I’m not bored, June! You’d know that if you let me speak for one fucking second. I’m also not all alone!” 

“Wait, what?” Nora gasps. “Did you already hook up with a girl?” 

“No. They double booked my room and I wouldn’t leave and neither would he and so now I have a roommate for my trip,” Alex tells them quickly. 

There’s silence for a long beat before the other two start laughing hysterically. “Alex, you idiot, why wouldn’t you just get another room in the hotel?” June asks. He can picture her red in the face from laughing. It’s making him mad. 

“I just...It was my room!” 

“So you’re sharing a room with a stranger, what, on principle?” Nora asks. 

Alex bites his lip, sitting down under a cabana. “That’s the thing. He’s not a stranger.” They are silent on the other end. “It’s Henry.” 

“Henry who?” 

For whatever reason, Alex cups his mouth and speaks softly into the phone. “Prince of Fucking Wales, Henry.” 

There’s another long silence before they start laughing again. Alex wishes he was closer so he could punch them. He sits there for too long, letting them make their comments and laugh at him before he stops them. “Hey, you jerks! Look, I’m clearly going to die this week. I need help. What do I do?” 

“Well your clearest option was the first one all along,” June tells him. “You could have gotten a different room and then avoided him the whole time. But now, if you go get another room, really you’re just letting him win.” Nora cackles in response. Alex is fuming, but he knows she’s right. 

“Okay, so...what do I do?” 

“Alex, I think the answer is obvious,” Nora offers. “It’s time you set aside your differences and you become best friends with Henry. I mean, the whole world is pulling for it. The two of you are so close in age and are famous because of your families. Everyone wants you to be best friends. I think it’s time that happens.” 

“Oh, fuck you.” 

“The other option is you fight with him the entire time,” June reminds him. “That doesn’t sound very enjoyable.” 

“I could just avoid him.” 

“That sounds like a lot of work,” Nora replies. “Nope, it’s time for you to make a friend that’s not the two of us.” June agrees with her.

“I seriously hate you both,” Alex deadpans. 

“Then I guess it’s really time for you to make new friends!” June says on a laugh. “Seriously, you should try and be nice to him and see what you can learn about each other. Maybe you could actually get along if you only took the chance.” 

“That’s an incredibly optimistic view,” Alex tells her. He pointedly leaves out the part where he ate dinner with Henry last night and they didn’t fight, but instead talked and joked together. It was odd. What was odder was how affected Alex was by seeing a different side of Henry. He’s kind of glad he hasn’t seen him yet today because he’s not sure how to deal with that yet. He’s always assumed Henry was one thing, and yet in just one night, he’d shown that maybe Alex was wrong. Alex doesn’t like being wrong, especially not about someone he’s supposed to spend the next week with. He wants to know what Henry’s deal is before it sneaks up and bites him in the ass. 

“Well, it was nice talking to you, Alex, but we’ve got to go,” Nora says, snapping Alex back to their conversation. 

“What? Why?” 

“Because so long as you have us to talk to, you’re not going to make friends with Henry. This will be our last conversation for many days,” Nora tells him. She ignores Alex as he yells “No” at her repeatedly. “Have a great trip! Make a friend!”

“Bye, Alex!” June yells right before the line disconnects. 

Alex hates them. 

He spends the next few minutes angrily texting them. As he expected, they don’t reply. After a bit longer staring at his phone, voices around him finally grab his attention. 

“Oh my God, I swear that’s him!” Alex tenses, preparing for someone to come over to him, wanting a picture or to talk, just  _ something _ . He keeps staring at his phone, hoping they won’t want to talk to him if he seems busy. “It is. It’s him! That’s Prince Henry!” 

Alex looks up. For all he’d wanted to avoid their attention, now he’s pissed. These people weren’t excited to see the First Son, yet again it was Henry. They were pitted against each other again, even if this time, it was really just in Alex’s mind. He didn’t have an answer for why it made him so irritated that these people were more excited to see Henry. 

But then he looked over and saw Henry running down the beach. His hair was wet with sweat and still bouncing with each step. He must have been running for a while because his shirt is soaked, sticking to him and outlining his chest. Alex can’t take his eyes off him. He doesn’t miss the small smile he shoots to the two women who are standing there, shellshocked and staring at him. Henry keeps running. Past the two women openly ogling him. Past Alex, staring at him dumbfounded. Past the rest of the beach goers who finally noticed they have a prince among them, looking objectively hot as he works up a sweat. He leaves the beach, entering the hotel, giving Alex a prime shot of the way his running shorts hug his English ass. 

Alex’s heart is doing something so weird he has to take a minute. He puts his head between his knees like he does if he feels like he’ll pass out. There’s no logical explanation that comes to mind why seeing him like that is affecting Alex this way. He can’t figure it out. It’s giving him an itchy feeling, like he wants to run into the ocean to get this feeling off his skin, out of his head. He stands up to do just that and realizes he’s still in his joggers that he threw on to go to breakfast. 

A run feels like an option. He also considers calling Nora until she gets annoyed and answers. She could probably just block his number until he gets back and that would get him nowhere. He considers going up to his room to change into his swimsuit, but then he’d run into Henry. There’s a small voice in the back of his head urging him to do that. It’s all so weird. 

Alex opens his phone and fires off a few more texts that go unread before he decides that a swim really does sound nice. While he’s in the elevator on the way to the room, he realizes Henry will probably be in the shower anyway. Alex pointedly ignores the thought that springs to mind from  _ that _ realization. Instead, he wonders how long he spent dilly dallying outside on the beach making up his mind. He’s still so confused about what happened. When he really thinks about it, it’s not the first time he’s been drawn to Henry like that. June’s old J14 magazine comes to mind, the younger boy in the polo uniform that had transfixed Alex so often. 

He’s pondering on what that could all add up to when he walks into the room. His mind is still on Young Henry and Beach Henry as he’s ruffling through his suitcase, looking for his swimsuit. He fails to miss the real Henry walking out of the bathroom until he stands up and yelps at the sight of him. Henry jumps back as well, seemingly startled to see Alex. His hand falls to the towel around his waist, holding it in place. Alex wants to look anywhere else but at the man standing before him, still dripping from the shower, in nothing but a towel. 

Henry starts sputtering and it shakes Alex from his reverie. “Sorry,” he yells, looking away from Henry. 

“No, sorry. I didn’t realize you were in here.” 

“Just grabbing my suit. Going down to the beach.” 

“Great.” 

“Great.” 

Alex slides past him, feeling the heat radiating off his body, and goes toward the bathroom, locking himself in the steamed up room. He puts a hand over his face, trying to make himself be normal. Before he can go ahead with changing his clothes, he has to make a list in his head. 

  1. Henry is objectively attractive. 
  2. It doesn’t matter that the sight of Henry’s body is messing with him. 
  3. He hates Henry. 



There’s a small voice in his head that reminds him that he doesn’t seem to really even  _ know _ Henry. At least not the way he was so sure he did before yesterday. 

Shaking his head, he changes into his swimsuit and turns back toward the door. He gets a weird urge and listens to it, ripping his shirt off before walking into the other room. Henry is fully clothed by the time Alex walks out. He’s almost disappointed by the fact that he’s looking at the wall instead of at Alex as he walks by. He sighs to himself, needing to fully remove himself from this whole messy situation. Without another look, Alex leaves the room and Henry behind. 

He spends most of the day alone. He swims, he kayaks, he drinks, but most of all, he distracts himself from his weirdass morning. It’s a day similar to what he’d enjoy at his dad’s lakehouse. Always outside, enjoying himself. But usually, images of his enemy’s body are not popping into his head to disturb him. 

By the time dinner arrives, he’s managed to get Henry out of his head for at least a couple hours. Of course, that’s when he sits down directly across from Alex. 

“Evening,” he greets. Alex nods in reply. He’s honestly not sure what his face is showing. His mind is back to spiralling. “Did you have an entertaining day?” 

Alex still only nods in reply. Henry gives him an odd look. “Yeah, I did. It was fun.” It’s a short reply. If he gives much more than that, Henry might think they’re friends.

“I was looking at various tours and such that they do from this resort and there were some options that sounded quite fun,” Henry comments. He ignores Alex’s silence and keeps speaking. “There’s a boat tour. Takes you to a more secluded part of the island. Apparently there’s some waterfall that people generally like to hike to.” Henry looks uncomfortable under Alex’s silent gaze. He shrugs, continuing in a smaller voice. “I thought it sounded nice. I thought maybe you’d want to go.” 

“What, because we’re trapped in the same room, we’re doing this vacation together now?” Alex fires off. He’s not even sure why he’s being mean to Henry at present. Just that he man is making him uncomfortable. 

“You certainly don’t have to,” Henry sputters out immediately. “I just thought it sounded nice and thought I’d tell you about it.” 

Their meals arrive and Alex doesn’t say anything else on the subject. He feels a bit like a dick, especially given the hurt look Henry wore for a split second before his press face replaced it. Suddenly it occurs to him that maybe the bored expression Henry always wears that infinitely bothers Alex is maybe just a cover. If people think he’s just bored, they won’t push him on anything. They won’t make him reveal his true feelings. 

Their dinner is mostly silent, with the exception of comments on what they ordered. It’s a stark contrast to the night before when they’d laughed together and realized they could maybe get along over the course of a meal. Alex knows it’s his fault. Henry was trying and he shut it down. The day has just been weird and Alex isn’t sure what to think of it. 

They don’t speak as they walk from the restaurant. Henry walks toward the elevator and Alex makes a stop at the desk. They still don’t speak when he gets back to the room. Henry finishes up his nightly routine and takes his place on the couch since it’s his night there. 

Alex lays in bed, unable to sleep — as always — and thinks about everything that happened. He feels like a dick, but he doesn’t want to. It’s been two days of being around Henry and already he’s all tied in knots. Alex isn’t sure what to make of it, but he does know that he doesn’t want it to ruin his trip. 

The next morning, Henry is up and out again before Alex. Alex grabs everything he thinks he’ll need for the day and heads down to the lobby. He follows the directions down to the docks and signs in with the right person. Once he’s on board, he scans around the inside before going up to the top deck. Standing right at the front is what he’s looking for. 

Alex sidles up next to Henry, leaning against the rail the same way. Henry glances over, a shocked look on his face. “Alex?” 

“Hey,” he says, staring out at the water. 

“What are you doing here?” 

Alex shrugs in reply. “You said you thought it would be fun. So…” He glances over at Henry, noticing the look of awe before he schools his expression. 

“Well...okay then.” 

Neither of them acknowledges the weirdness from the night before. Alex asks him some innocuous question and the ease from the first dinner is back as the boat sets sail from the dock.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you think so far! Thanks for reading! :)


	4. The Island

Henry is quite genuinely shocked by the fact that Alex joined him on the tour. He’s still not sure what had bothered Alex the day before. They’d barely seen each other and yet, he’d acted as if Henry had personally slighted him. It’s confusing to Henry, but part of him is happy for the company. Alex is there, even if he doesn’t know why. He plans not to ask, but his mind is wandering at dangerous speeds. 

They’re both looking out at the scenery as the boat takes them away from the shore and out onto the water. Henry does his best not to stare at Alex, though it’s all he can do not to. He wonders if he could tell by looking at Alex why he’d changed his mind. Henry is sure it was obvious that he’d been offended when Alex said they didn’t need to spend time together. Yet, here he is. 

What changed?

He keeps talking with Alex, answering his questions as if nothing is wrong. As if they’ve been friends for a while. It’s been a dizzying back and forth over the last few days. Alex is friendly. Alex hates him again. Alex shows up unannounced in a nice gesture. Henry can’t figure Alex out and it’s driving him insane. 

“So, why are you here?” Alex asks him. 

Henry glances over at him, confusion clear on his face. “Hmm?” 

“Here, in Hawaii? What brought you here?” 

He looks out over the water, thinking on how it all came together. “It was my mate, Percy. Well, Pez. He and I have been friends for a long time and he’s...have you ever heard of Okonjo Industries?” Alex nods. “That’s his family. He’s Percy Okonjo.” 

“So your friend is a millionaire?” Alex asks with a grin. 

“Yeah,” Henry admits, laughing. “Anyway, this year was harder than I expected and I suppose I spoke a lot about it to him and he sent me here as a birthday present.” 

“Not trying to be rude, I’m just curious,” Alex starts before Henry cuts him off. 

“Surprising.” Henry flashes him a grin and Alex shakes his head, rolling his eyes. 

“How is a gap year difficult? It’s like a year off.” 

“Not really though,” Henry tells him. “It’s a year to give me time to figure out what I want to do in life, but it’s not like I have the full options I’d like. And even with a year to do theoretically as I please, I’m still under the thumb of the crown. I’m still expected to do everything my grandmother commands me to do. It’s not really a year off. It’s just a reprieve from other duties I don’t want to commit to yet. If in that time, I get to travel more and do more of the things I like, that’s nice, but it’s not the full purpose of it.” 

“You know, it’s interesting. Hearing you talk, you almost sound like you wish you weren’t a royal,” Alex muses. 

“Your words.” 

He can feel Alex’s eyes on him. “Do you wish you weren’t?” 

Of course he wishes he weren’t a royal, but there’s no way he can admit as much. Especially not to Alex. And especially not in public where anyone could hear. He wants to keep this more or less open dialogue between him and Alex going though. He stares out at the sea and thinks of a way to answer. 

“I guess I just wasn’t raised to think it was the end all, be all of the world. When I was a boy, I didn’t like people knowing my every move or knowing my name. And there are a lot of times now that I feel that same way,” Henry admits. He pauses for a moment, thinking of how to explain it. “My father wasn’t royal.” 

“He was an actor, right?” 

Henry glances over at Alex, surprised by the amount he already knows about Henry’s life. Obviously, it’s out in the open for anyone to know, but somehow, it seems to stun him. Maybe he’s surprised that Alex cared enough to learn the information. Henry nods in reply. 

“But he died?” 

Again, Henry nods. He can’t believe he’s talking about his dad at all, let alone with Alex. What is it about him that brings out every possible vulnerable topic of conversation? And why is Henry falling for it? “He did,” Henry says in a small voice. “When I was 18.” 

“I’m sorry.” 

Henry’s staring pointedly away from Alex and shakes his head. “It was a long time ago now.” 

“That doesn’t mean it can’t still hurt you.” 

Looking over at Alex, he notes the earnest expression he’s wearing. This is a completely different Alex than the one he spent time with yesterday. It’s befuddling to him. “Anyway,” he says, “my father was an actor and my mother was obviously in line for the throne, but could see the issues with the royal family. And so they didn’t raise me to think that we deserve everything that we have.” 

“Makes sense.” 

“I think Gran, of course, would prefer we seem so grateful for our luck of being born into this family. Like it’s not just as much a prison as it is a title.” 

“Well, damn.” Alex pauses for a moment, a confused expression on his face. “Okay, correct me if I’m wrong, but your brother seems like kind of the opposite. Like he thinks he’s hot shit because he’s a prince.” 

Henry bursts out laughing at the description. “Yes, well, you’d be right about that unfortunately. Philip is obnoxious in that way. For whatever reason, when Dad passed, the way he reacted to it was by throwing himself further into Gran’s arms.” 

“Yikes.” 

“Indeed.” 

“I’m sure that makes family get togethers so much fun,” Alex says with a laugh. 

“Luckily, I have Bea. Otherwise, yes, I’d go insane.” They’re both silent for a moment before Henry continues. “I guess I just feel like a real arse for saying I wish I didn’t have all that I do when I know people would kill to be in the position I’m in. It’s hard to complain about my life when people are in far worse conditions.” 

“Yeah, that’s fair,” Alex agrees in a small voice. 

“There’s also the fact that I don’t particularly enjoy being tied to a family that is objectively  _ not great _ .” 

Alex raises his brow in amusement. “Ah, the British Empire. I would imagine for anyone who is actually a decent person, it would be hard to be a part of that.” 

“Exactly. One does not foster a lifelong love of  _ Star Wars _ without knowing that an empire isn’t a good thing.” 

He looks over at Alex to see him look a bit stunned. “ _ Star Wars _ , huh?” 

“What? Are you going to make fun of me for it?” 

“No!” Alex nearly yells. “God, no. I love it!” 

“Really?” 

“Hell yeah. Which one is your favorite?” 

Henry grins. This is a conversation he never would have expected they’d have. “ _ Return of the Jedi _ .” 

“Wow, you’re wrong.” 

“How can I be wrong about my own favorite? It’s a personal truth.” 

“It’s a personal truth that is wrong and bad.” 

Henry huffs out a breath. “Which do you prefer then? Please show me the error of my ways.” 

Alex grins at him. “Okay.  _ Empire _ .” 

Henry shakes his head. “So dark, though.” 

The two of them begin to squabble over  _ Star Wars _ and it’s somehow the easiest and most infuriating conversation Henry thinks they’ve ever had. 

When a silence hangs between them, Henry changes the subject. “So you asked me. Why are you here?” 

Alex looks at him for a second before looking back out at the water with a shrug. “Graduation present to myself. Well, more or less from my family. My sister worries about me too much. It was her idea. She got my parents to help me out.” 

“So why send you by yourself?” 

Alex gives him an odd look. “I don’t know. I guess because her job isn’t for my mother,” he says with a laugh. “I think she just thought I needed to get away.” 

“Is she right?” 

“She usually is.” 

Henry smiles fondly. “Older sisters must just be like that.” 

An announcement comes over the speakers on the boat, announcing that they’ve reached their destination and are docking. Almost reluctantly, Henry moves from his post. It’s been an interesting time talking with Alex. 

Alex on the other hand, grins and moves quickly toward the steps back down to the first level. He looks back and yells at Henry to get moving. Henry shakes his head at him, but picks up his pace and follows after Alex. 

They follow the tour guide off the boat, but eventually, the group disperses and they get to roam free. Alex decides he’s their leader and with a shit-eating grin, tells Henry to follow him. He must not know that Henry already would follow him anywhere. It’s probably for the best that he doesn’t know that. They wander for a while, trying to find the waterfall. Alex seems determined to beat everyone else there. Henry is always a few steps behind Alex, trying hard not to stare at his arse the entire time. He’s more or less successful. 

They hear the waterfall before they find it. The sound of rushing water alerts them that they’re close. Alex gets an excited smile on his face, one Henry reslishes getting to see firsthand. Alex leads them further up a hill. Coming through a line of trees, they find it. They’re to the side of it, getting to see it’s beauty in full as it crashes into the water below. Alex pulls out his phone and starts snapping pictures of it. 

“Stand over there,” Alex orders him. When he doesn’t move, Alex says, “Come on, I’ll take your picture.” Reluctantly, Henry goes over and stands where Alex instructs him. “Okay, smile. Not your press smile, your real one!” 

“How do you know I have a press smile?” 

“Because I’ve seen you smile for real and it’s not what I’ve seen when you do interviews. Come on.” 

Henry smiles for the camera, silently wondering to himself if Alex has watched any of the interviews he’s done. It’s an odd thought. He shoves it from his mind as he makes Alex go stand where he’d stood so he can take Alex’s picture. He hams it up for the camera and Henry laughs at him. Alex walks back toward him and makes him take a picture with him. “We don’t have to do that…” he sputters. 

“Shut up and just smile,” Alex commands again. His arm goes around Henry’s shoulder as he smiles into the camera. Henry follows his lead, matching Alex’s pose and smiling too. The moment is over as soon as the picture is taken and Alex marches closer to the base of the waterfall.

He takes off his sandals first, putting his sunglasses on them, followed by his shirt. Henry does his best not to stare. Alex grins and walks over towards the water. 

“What are you doing?” 

Alex looks at him like he’s crazy. “What do you think I’m doing? I’m gonna jump.” 

“You’re mad!” 

“Not really. Jumping off of cliffs is kind of my thing!” He looks over at Henry with a challenging stare. “What, are you too chicken to jump?” 

“I don’t think I should.” 

“Come on, doesn’t it sound thrilling? Come over here and jump with me!” 

Henry pauses for a long time. Alex’s insistence gets the best of him and he’s quickly peeling off his shirt, sunglasses, and hat and throwing them down with Alex’s things. Alex is smiling widely at him, beckoning him over. 

“Don’t look down,” Alex advises. 

“You want me  _ not  _ to look?” 

“I think you’ll just psych yourself out if you look.” Alex positions himself in the rushing water, carefully not falling. He holds his hand out to Henry with a nod. Henry looks from his face to his hand and back before delicately taking it. He steps up next to Alex and hates how susceptible he is to the man’s charm. “Okay, on three. One. Two.  _ Three _ !” 

Henry squeezes onto Alex’s hand for dear life as they jump together, both of them plummeting toward the water. Before he can process the fall, they’re in the water, still holding hands. Alex whoops as they pop out of the water, looking at Henry to see his reaction. To his surprise, he’s smiling, realizing it wasn’t as bad as he’d expected. It was perhaps the most daring thing he’d done in years and it was exhilarating. He’s glad they’d beaten everyone else to the waterfall, allowing him and Alex to have this moment just them. 

“Thoughts?” Alex asks around a wide grin.

He knows Alex just wants to hear that he’s right. Henry shrugs, swimming away from him towards the rocks. “It was all right.” 

“You asshole!” Alex yells, splashing water at him. “You had a great time!” 

Henry just looks over at him and smiles. He pulls himself up on a rock and sits on it like it’s his throne. Alex swims around the pool at the base of the waterfall. He looks positively gleeful. It’s maybe the happiest he’s seen Alex  _ ever _ — certainly the happiest around Henry. 

Eventually, Alex climbs up on a rock next to Henry and sits there. A comfortable silence hangs between them. Naturally, Alex is the first to break it. “Okay, this is the only time this will probably happen, but I have to admit that you were right.” Henry looks at him with wide, excited eyes. “Shut up. I’m just saying, this place is pretty awesome.” 

Henry shakes his head with a grin. “I know. It really is.”

Alex is the first one to jump back in and he calls for Henry to join him. With a shrug, Henry stands up on the rock and dives back in. 

“Oh come on,” Alex groans once Henry’s head breaks through the surface. “Can’t you ever just do one thing without being so goddamn extra about it?” 

Henry splashes water at him with a laugh. “You’re one to talk!” 

They swim around a bit until some of the others from their trip start to arrive at the waterfall. Henry goes back toward the rock and lets Alex do what he wants. Soon, Alex joins him, watching as others wade into the pool or jump from the waterfall. 

“Want to go explore some more?” Alex asks. Henry nods. They go find their clothes up where they left them and Henry follows Alex wherever he wants to go. Alex hangs back a bit this time, in less of a hurry. This time they walk together instead of Alex leading the way. 

When it feels like they’re curving back to where they started, the two of them sit on the beach and wait for the time they’re supposed to get back on the boat. Henry’s proud of himself for how easily he ignored how romantic the day really could have been. He’s surprised that his mind wasn’t constantly in that state, but instead, he just had fun with Alex. It seems like Alex enjoyed himself as well. If he was going to follow Henry on a trip, Henry’s glad it was one that he enjoyed. 

They’re sailing back toward the dock by their resort, sitting with their backs to the wall of the boat, staring out at the sea. 

“Okay, so what plans do you have while you’re here?” Alex asks. Henry gives him an odd look. “What? I have accepted that maybe you were right. Maybe it’s more fun with company.” 

“Hmm. That’s just…that’s really interesting.” 

“Shut up,” Alex says with a roll of his eyes. “What else were you wanting to do?” 

Henry shrugs. “I don’t know.” 

“You had to have some things planned, right?” 

“Well, yes, theoretically. Though, I’d also be fine sitting on a beach reading Jane Austen the whole time.” 

Alex scoffs. “We’re not doing that.” 

“Okay, so what do  _ you _ want to do?” 

“I was really looking forward to flying by the seat of my pants, honestly. I didn’t plan too much. I will say, I want to go parasailing.” 

“How about tomorrow?” 

“Perfect!” Alex pins Henry with an intense look. “Now, what were you wanting to do?” 

Henry rolls his eyes. Does Alex know how easily he can make Henry spill his guts? It seems like he knows the power he holds. Finally, he sighs, giving in. “I heard there’s this spot that has this amazing view that is especially good at sunrise and sunset.” 

“I don’t do sunrises.” 

Henry chuckles. “I don’t if I can’t help it.” 

“Great! Then Thursday, we’ll go at sunset and check out this spot.” 

“We really don’t have to,” Henry offers. He doesn’t know why he feels uncomfortable with the idea of going there with Alex. 

“Nope, we’re going!” 

Henry watches Alex for a moment, trying to read him. “So, what, because we’re trapped in the same room, we’re doing this vacation together now?” Henry asks, throwing Alex’s words back at him. 

Alex smirks, recognizing the challenge for what it is. “Yep. That’s what’s happening.” 

In the moment, Henry smiles, nodding in reply. And it feels like the beginning of their friendship is also happening. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you, thank you to those of you who are reading and commenting! It's so nice of you! Hope you enjoyed this one! It's such a fun story to write! I've been surprised by how frequently I've been updating it. Fingers crossed I can keep this pace up! :)


	5. The Accident

The day starts differently than any of the other days of the trip. They wake up around the same time and Alex fights Henry for the bathroom. The only plan for the day is Alex parasailing. So they go down to breakfast together, sitting there talking until they notice the staff cleaning up for lunch time. When they’re back in their room, Henry goes to his suitcase. “What time are you parasailing again?” 

“2:00.” 

“All right. I’m going to go on a run.” 

Alex watches him for a moment. “Do you always run this much?” 

Henry shrugs. “Not necessarily this often, but I don’t usually have a beach to run on.” 

Alex scoffs. “What, that’s the downfall of royalty? You don’t have a beach?” 

He laughs in reply. “You caught me. That’s it.”

“I just figured you run to maintain your delicate figure,” Alex teases. 

Henry smirks in reply. “I do enjoy a good scone.” He grabs his clothes and walks into the bathroom. While he’s doing that, Alex makes up his mind. 

When Henry walks out in his running gear, Alex is ready in his. “I’m gonna come with you.” Henry eyes him for a moment before shrugging and walking toward the door. Alex follows him out and Henry stops on the beach, bending down. Alex nearly walks into him. “What are you doing?” 

He walks around him, looking at him. Henry glances up. “Stretching?” He stands up and pulls his foot up behind him. Alex should have known that, he’s just more distracted by Henry than he wants to be. He does the same stretches he usually does and waits for Henry to be finished. He thinks about heckling him, but keeps it to himself. 

Finally, Henry walks over to Alex and nods toward the beach. “How far down do you usually go?” Alex asks. 

Henry grins. “Why? Worried you can’t keep up?” And then he takes off running. 

Alex is stopped for a moment, irritated by Henry but also amused by him. It’s a strange combination. He’s running behind him, trying to catch up. The same issue from the other morning is back. He’s getting distracted by Henry — and more importantly, the way he looks running. He feels like he’s stared at Henry’s ass too much and pushes himself harder to not be directly behind him. He gets right up next to Henry and kicks his foot up towards his thigh. He aims too high and accidentally kicks Henry’s ass. Henry looks over, stumbling slightly. Alex takes the advantage and runs past him. 

“Worried you can’t keep up?” he yells back, laughing his head off. 

They spend the next stretch of their run passing the other and fighting for who’s the leader. Finally, Henry slows and allows Alex the chance to catch up for the last time and they run at pace with each other. Alex looks over to a pair of girls staring at them from further up the beach. 

“Did you see that girl with the camera a while back?” Alex asks. 

“Yeah.” Alex can hear the regret in his voice. He knows the feeling. Time away should be sacred. 

“I’m trying to decide what people will think this is if someone posts a photo of us,” Alex muses. He’s surprised to hear Henry laugh. “Maybe people will think we’re best friends on vacation together.” 

“Do two male best friends really go on trips just the two of them though? To Hawaii?” Henry asks. 

“Fair enough.” Alex smacks Henry’s arm. “I guess maybe they’ll think we’re lovers.” 

“Ha!” Henry replies, an odd look on his face. After a beat, he adds, “That seems too implausible.” 

“You think so?” 

Henry looks over, grinning. “Of course. It’s not like  _ you  _ could land a prince.” 

Alex scoffs loudly, shoving Henry. They’re both laughing, even as Henry recovers his footing. “Please, you’d be lucky to be with me,” Alex insists. “People love me.” 

Henry stops laughing and looks over. “I know they do.” 

“I’m still offended by your accusation,” Alex says. 

Henry rolls his eyes. “You know you rise to the occasion so easily.” 

“That’s what Nora says.” 

“Well, it seems like Nora is right.” Alex shortens the distance between them and lands an elbow in Henry’s side. “Hey!” Alex runs a bit faster, resuming the competition, shooting a grin over his shoulder. 

“That’s what you get!” Alex yells. 

Alex keeps running, even when they turn around and run back in the direction of the hotel. Henry catches up to him and they run in a comfortable silence. Alex kind of gets it — why Henry goes running everyday. It’s all peaceful and easy. Even when he shoots a glance over at Henry, it still seems pretty easy. 

As they’re getting close to the end, Alex realizes it’s all so much different than he expected just a few days ago. He thought that he would be miserable with Henry there, but he’s far from it. It’s weird to realize that Henry is actually  _ fun _ . He throws insults back at Alex just as easily as Alex hurls them at him. And it all seems like good natured humor. He wonders where this person has been all the other times he’s met him. It’s just as disorienting as it was the first night they got dinner together. Alex finds himself wanting to know more about this person. 

He joined Henry on the boat trip the day before because he’d felt bad for acting like a jerk. But then they’d actually had a really good time. He keeps seeing Henry in a new light and it’s off putting. Especially because he thinks the new version of Henry is pretty great. 

The task Nora and June pressed on him — to make friends with Henry — doesn’t seem so hard. Hell, it feels like it’s already happening. 

* * *

Henry wanders down to the dock where they’re meeting the boat for Alex to go parasailing. “You know,” Alex says, “You can still come with me. I checked with the lady at the desk. She said it’s fine for two people to go up.” 

He feels oddly touched by Alex’s offer. Probably due to his initial rejection of Henry even being there. It seems they’ve come a long way in just a few days. “I appreciate the offer, Alex, but I can’t.” 

“Why? Are you scared of heights?” Alex asks, one brow raised. 

“No. I just...well it wouldn’t be a good idea.” 

“Why? Are you a chicken?”

“I’m going to sabotage your rigging,” Henry says in irritation. It only makes Alex laugh. 

“Come on. Why?” 

Henry rolls his eyes. Alex is nothing if not stubborn. “Because I’m the spare.” 

“What does that mean?” 

“I thought you knew more about the royal family. Philip’s the heir and I’m the spare. I’m expected to live my life like he’s going to drop dead early and I’ll ascend to the throne,” Henry explains, perhaps making it a bit more dramatic than necessary. 

“You’re fucking kidding me?” Henry shakes his head. “That’s bullshit. Is that part of what you meant by rules and responsibilities and all that?” 

“Kind of.” 

“What about Bea?” Alex gets a frustrated look on his face and steps closer to Henry. “Do you rank higher than Bea because you’re a man.” 

“I’m afraid I do. But believe me, it wasn’t my choice. I’d gladly give her her spot back.” 

“I guess no one’s ever accused the monarchy of being very feminist, even if you do have a queen.” 

“I think my grandmother would curl up and die if someone tried to get her to be more open minded,” Henry says bitterly. Alex watches him for a moment. 

“That’s stupid. You should get to have fun. You’re on vacation. Just say fuck it and come with me,” Alex tries. 

Henry can’t fight the small smile that forms on his face. “I appreciate the offer, but I’ll make you a better offer. How about you give me your phone and I’ll record you parasailing?” 

That seems to interest Alex. His eyes grow bright and wide and he smiles widely with a nod. “Yeah, okay.” He pulls out his phone and leaves it with Henry. 

Henry walks over toward the long stretch of the pier, watching Alex’s boat leave, starting to record when he starts going up in the air. Alex is so small from his vantage point, but he can hear his whoops once he reaches altitude. Henry can’t help but laugh to himself. The longer Alex is up in the air, Henry starts to regret his choice to offer to record. He’s started and stopped many times. He thinks maybe Alex should have been the one to record. It’s surely more exciting from up there. 

Henry’s wandering back toward the dock as they’re starting to bring Alex back down. He hears a yell and looks up to see Alex’s boat swerving to avoid another boat. Alex, partway still up in the air, is thrown sideways, snapping a cord attaching him to the boat. His body slams down against the wood of the dock and he lays there. Henry races toward him. Out of the corner of his eye, he can see Cash racing that way as well. Henry knows he’ll beat him. 

He gets to Alex and hovers over him, pressing a hand to his shoulder delicately. “Alex? Talk to me.” 

“Did you get that?” he groans. 

“What?” 

Alex picks his head up and looks at Henry. “On video? Did you get that on video?” 

Henry stares at him for a moment before he smacks his arm. “You’re an idiot.” He stands up and starts to walk from him until Cash gets there. “He’s responsive.” Cash nods, stepping closer to Alex. 

“You okay?”

“I’m good, Cash. I’m not even hurt.” Alex grins up at them both. 

“If you’re not even hurt, why are you still laying there?” Henry asks. 

“Even if I’m not hurt, I still had a crash landing. I’m milking it a bit, Henry,” he retorts. “So, did you do it after all Henry? Did you sabotage my rigging?” He’s grinning. Henry just rolls his eyes in response. 

“Alex, maybe you should get up,” Cash advises. “You know, just so we know you’re actually all right.” 

With a roll of his eyes, Alex groans. He pushes himself up on his arms and starts to get up. “See, Henry, I’m fine.” Once he stands on his left ankle, he collapses forward with a cry of pain. Henry rushes forward and catches him. Alex’s arms come around him as he winces in pain. “Okay, so maybe my ankle hurts a bit.” 

Cash grabs one of Alex’s arms and helps hold him up while Henry supports him. “Alex, I’ll carry you inside.” 

“Nope. No fucking way,” Alex says. Henry groans in annoyance. He doesn’t understand how one man can be so stubborn. “I will not be photographed getting carried inside by my security. That’s pathetic.” 

Henry lets go of his arm. “Fine, why don’t you just walk in there yourself then.” Alex glares at Henry before steeling his expression. He takes one step forward with his right ankle but collapses again when he tries to put weight on his left ankle. Henry catches him again. “Why don’t you just let Cash carry you?” 

“It’s called  _ pride, _ Henry. I happen to have some.” 

“Maybe we should take you to the resort doc-in-a-box. Just make sure your ankle is all right,” Cash suggests. 

“It’s fine,” Alex insists. “Once I get back into the room, I’ll just take some tylenol.” 

Cash looks over at Henry, rolling his eyes. Henry wonders if they should just strong arm Alex and force him to do what they want him to do. Alex tries to take another step and hisses in pain. Finally, with a scoff, Henry steps in front of him and bends down. 

“What the fuck are you doing?” 

“Just get on my back,” he tells him. 

“How is this better?” Alex asks. 

Henry looks over his shoulder. “Would you rather walk into the hotel draped in Cash’s arms like a bride? This at least makes it look like we’re just horsing around.” 

“I’d just carry him like a sack of potatoes over my shoulder if we’re being honest,” Cash tells them. 

Henry looks from Cash to Alex and raises one brow. Alex groans, but motions for Henry to bend down further. He climbs on his back and Henry adjusts his position slightly, walking up toward the hotel. 

“Thank you,” Alex says in a small voice, directly in Henry’s ear. Henry tries not to focus on his voice hot in his ear, his arms around draped against his chest, or Henry’s hands holding on tight to his legs. 

“No problem,” he says back. 

Cash fills up a bag of ice as Henry sets Alex down on the couch, getting him a pillow to prop his ankle up on the table. They ice it and give Alex medicine. Cash walks back toward the door and motions for Henry to follow him. 

“Thanks for your help back there. He can be such a little shit.” 

Henry laughs slightly, looking back over at Alex. “Well, yeah. But that’s Alex.” 

“Let me know if he needs anything. You too,” Cash says, walking out the door. 

“I will. Thank you, Cash.” 

* * *

Alex watches as Henry frets over him. He’s trying to act like everything’s fine, but Alex can see that he’s concerned. He’s replaced the ice on Alex’s ankle twice without being asked. He’s adjusted the pillow he’s propped it up on a few times as well. Alex wants to tell him to quit, but he’s not sure he wants him to. Other than June, no one really looks out for him much. He doesn’t want people to know how much he needs, but he doesn’t mind Henry tending to him, surprisingly. 

Henry sits down on the other end of the couch and picks up his book for the fifth time since they got back in the room. Alex can’t help but interrupt him. 

“Why are you doing this?” 

“Doing what?” Henry doesn’t look up from his book. 

“Taking care of me.” 

Henry looks up that time. He shrugs with one shoulder. “Well someone’s got to, right?” 

“It doesn’t have to be you. It’s your vacation too.” 

He looks back to his book. “I don’t mind.” 

They sit in silence for a while until Henry decides he’s hungry. He grabs the room service menu and moves closer to Alex. “What sounds good? Anything?” 

He’s trying to read Henry. He doesn’t know many people who would take care of someone who’s not even really their friend because they got hurt. Most people would help him in the room and then go find something else to do and leave him to fend for himself. It’s hard trying to figure Henry out. Alex feels determined to do so at some point. 


	6. The Misunderstanding

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here, have the longest chapter yet! :)

Alex lays in bed a lot longer than usual the next morning. He can hear Henry in the bathroom and ignores the urge to get up and go about his day. It’s not like he has anything planned. He keeps replaying the crash in his mind the longer he lays there. It was a bit scary, but there’s no way he’ll ever admit that to anyone. When he smacked against the dock, it did hurt, it was probably just shock that kept him from feeling worse. 

He’d been laying there, telling himself to get up when Henry got to him. Feeling the man’s hand against his shoulder had been more comforting than he’d wanted to admit. He really had thought he was fine until he started to walk. He’s still not sure how it was his ankle of all things that got hurt, but he’s not complaining. He can deal with a hurt ankle. 

Henry opens the door from the bathroom and walks out, glancing at Alex. “I didn’t wake you, did I?” Alex shakes his head. “Good.” Henry watches him for a beat. “How are you feeling?” 

Alex shrugs. “I feel okay. I think. I haven’t been awake that long. And also haven’t tried putting weight on my ankle.” 

“Well, let me know if you need anything,” Henry offers, moving off toward the other room. 

“Thanks,” Alex says in a small voice, watching him leave. He swings his legs out and tests standing up on his injured ankle. Without meaning to, he groans loudly. Henry’s back at his side in a flash. 

“Are you okay?” His hands are hovering just over Alex’s arms, wanting to help, but not wanting to be a nuisance. 

“Okay, so my ankle hurts,” Alex admits, sitting back down on the bed. 

“You want me to help you to the couch?” 

Alex shakes his head. “My first stop needs to be the bathroom, and I’m sorry, but I’m not letting you help me pee.” 

Henry, to his surprise, laughs. “Yeah, I don’t think we’ve reached that point.” 

Alex looks up at him with a small grin. It’s still weird to him to be getting along with Henry. He blows out a breath, preparing himself to try walking on his ankle. “Okay, I’m gonna do it.” 

“Are you sure?” 

“Yep.” He pushes himself up on his feet, grimacing as he puts a bit of weight on his left ankle. “Do me a favor and just stay nearby. I agree with you that we’re not at that point, but if I fall —” 

“I’ll be here,” Henry promises. 

Alex shoots him a tight smile and limps off into the bathroom. Luckily, he gets through everything he needs to do without assistance and only some pain. He’s started hopping around on his right foot to get from place to place. It’s more or less effective. He pointedly ignores Henry when he throws his head back and laughs at Alex’s hopping. 

“You’re just sad that I don’t need you,” Alex yells over his shoulder. 

“Devastated,” Henry retorts, following him into the living room area. He picks up the room service menu and looks it over. “What sounds good for breakfast?” 

“Room service  _ again _ ?” Alex asks. “You’re running up quite the tab.” 

“Well the way I see it is, one, you can’t likely get down to the dining room, and two, they should really be refunding us half our money because we’re sharing the room. They shouldn’t get to keep both payments on it. So, might as well spend some of that on room service,” Henry reasons. 

“Damn, that’s a fair point. I’ll take waffles.” 

Henry wrinkles his nose. “Anything else?” 

He leans back against the arm of the couch, stretching his leg out and putting his hands behind his head. “Nope, that’ll be good.” 

“Lovely.” Henry gives him a look and walks toward the room phone. 

Alex readjusts his stance once Henry sits down with their newly arrived breakfast orders. Alex does wonder if room service orders are always so prompt or if it’s because the order came from the room with the First Son and the Prince of Wales in it. Alex is tearing into his waffles, hungrier than he realized, when he looks over at Henry and sees him pause before cutting into his omelet. He’s frozen over his breakfast, a disappointed look on his face. Alex wonders for a second if he was expecting Alex to pray with him or something over his meal. He notices Alex’s gaze and looks back down at his plate, finally starting to eat. 

“What’s up?” Alex asks. 

“Nothing.” 

Alex sticks a bite of waffle in his mouth, keeping his eyes on Henry. “Well something’s bothering you. What is it?” 

Henry plasters on his fake smile that Alex knows is his press smile. “I’m fine.” 

Alex sets his plate down on the table across from them. He doesn’t miss Henry rolling his eyes. “Look, we’re trapped in this room together. You’ve been taking care of me. And we’ve been like actually getting along. Could you please just tell me what is bothering you? It’s starting to bother me now.” 

“It’s just because you’re nosy.” 

Alex groans, running a hand through his hair. “I will smear this whipped cream on your face. Just tell me what’s bothering you.” 

Henry stares down at his plate. “I’m just a bit disappointed. That’s all.” 

“Over what?” 

He sighs, standing up and taking his plate toward the balcony. “Alex, it really doesn’t matter.” He opens the door and sits down in a chair, attempting to eat his omelet without Alex pestering him. 

Alex looks down at his waffles that are surely growing cold, but his mind is focused on Henry. He eats his breakfast slowly, trying to imagine what could have disappointed Henry between ordering breakfast and receiving it. Alex had been talking about what he could do while being lazy all day. He tries to figure out if that could have somehow bothered Henry. It’s not until he finishes his last bite of waffles that it hits him. They were supposed to go hiking today. Alex runs a hand down his face, feeling guilty. His hurt ankle obviously means they won’t get to do the thing Henry wanted to do. 

Alex leaves his plate on the table and hops out to the balcony, settling in himself in the chair next to Henry’s. He’s pointedly not looking at Alex. 

“I’m sorry,” Alex says. 

“I simply came out here because it’s a pretty view,” Henry insists. “Certainly not because of you.” 

“I hurt my ankle,” Alex starts. 

“Again?” Henry asks, whipping his head over. He looks truly concerned. 

“No, I mean yesterday. I got to do the thing I wanted to do and I got hurt which means we can’t do the thing you wanted to do,” Alex says, raising one eyebrow. 

Henry looks back out toward the water. “It’s not like you got hurt on purpose. Besides, I was planning to go alone anyway.” 

“Even after I said I’d go with you?” 

He shakes his head. “No, just originally. It’s fine. Don’t worry about it. There’s plenty of time left for me to go.” 

“What if I want to go with you?” Alex asks. When Henry doesn’t respond, he keeps going. “I mean, it’s been fun doing this stuff with someone, rather than alone.” 

“Alex, you’re not going to be able to hop your way up a mountain,” Henry reminds him. 

“We’re going tomorrow,” Alex decides. 

Henry scoffs. “You could barely get yourself up for a piss this morning. There’s no way.” 

“I’m a determined man. Also stubborn. When I put my mind to something, I do it. So, tomorrow, well over 24 hours from now, we’re going to hike that damn mountain at sunset. Or, I guess  _ by  _ sunset so that we can see the view at sunset,” Alex says. 

“You really don’t need to put pressure on yourself or on your ankle to achieve something that I could easily just do on my own,” Henry tells him. 

“Nope, I’m going. I care about beautiful views and good times now.” 

“Okay, then.” 

Alex leans back in his chair, delicately propping his ankle up against the railing. “So does this mean you’ll talk to me again?” 

Henry laughs, setting his plate down on the table between their chairs, and mimicking Alex’s position. “For someone who came on a trip alone, you sure do need me to talk to you a lot.” 

“Believe me, it surprises me too.” 

They chat more easily after that. Alex mentions something about Harry Potter and that changes the conversation as well. It’s endlessly entertaining to Alex to see this side of Henry — the side that engages in and enjoys pop culture, that has very specific opinions that he will fight for, that seems like a real human with real human interests. 

Alex is more touched than he wants to be that Henry gives up a day of his vacation to sit with him in their room. Every so often, Alex decides he’s going to get up to get something, and Henry hovers, not jumping up for him, not letting him do it on his own, but just being nearby in case he’s needed. It’s kind. And it’s more than pre-Hawaii Alex would have ever expected from him. 

It’s only when Henry gets up to go for a run — he apologizes to Alex multiple times but Alex tells him to go — that Alex realizes he hasn’t even  _ tried  _ to get ahold of June or Nora in a couple of days. Once Henry is out of the room, Alex hobbles back to the couch and clicks on June’s number. 

“Wow, long time no hear,” June says with a laugh. 

“That’s awful,” Alex tells her. 

“Whatever. How’s it going?” 

Alex pauses, wondering how much to divulge to his sister. “It’s good.” 

“That’s incredibly vague,” June replies. “How are things going with Henry? Have you murdered him yet? I can’t get involved in hiding a body when it’s a member of the British Royal Family.” 

“No, he’s still alive,” Alex says with a laugh. “Are you saying that you’d help me hide a body if it was someone who isn’t royalty?” 

“I probably would. But let’s not dwell on that. Tell me about your trip so far. More specifically, how you’re managing sharing a room with your sworn enemy.” 

Alex rolls his eyes. “It’s going okay.” 

“You’re going to need to give me more than that.” 

“Whatever, we’re like...kind of getting along.” 

“I knew it!” June yells. 

“Shut up,” Alex says, annoyed by her reaction. “Look, we just haven’t been at each other's throats.” 

“And why is that? Could it be because you set your problems with him aside and realized that you two actually could get along?” He can picture the annoying face she’s making. 

“I don’t know. We just talked, I guess. Don’t make a big deal out of it.” 

“I hate to break it to you, but it  _ is  _ a big deal. You straight up hated him — which I will remind you, I always thought was stupid — but now you’re getting along. That’s a big deal. I’m proud of you. Have you guys done anything together?” 

For some reason, Alex doesn’t want to tell his sister that they’ve spent the last three days totally together. He feels like she’ll just use that information to prove her point even further. “Um,” he says to buy himself time, “well yesterday I went parasailing and had kind of a crash landing and hurt my ankle—” 

“Oh my god, are you okay?” 

“I’m fine. Mostly. My ankle hurts. But Henry was nearby and saw it happen,” he tells, excluding the part where Henry was filming his journey through the sky. “Anyway, he ran over and helped me back inside and has been trying to take care of me today.” 

June is quiet for a moment and it’s putting Alex on edge. “Well, that’s nice of him.” 

“Yeah, it is.” 

“Sounds like something a friend would do,” she says with a laugh. 

“You dick.” 

“I’m just saying. Maybe stop fighting it and admit that it kinda seems like you and Henry have become friends.” 

“Can you make a new friend in 4 days?” 

“I don’t think there’s a limit on that,” June says. Alex sighs. “Look, either way, I’m glad you’re enjoying your trip. I was kind concerned when you said Henry was there that you’d just spend the whole time fixated on why you hate him. I’m glad you’re able to look past that.” 

Alex knows he’s going to regret saying this, but he feels he has to. “I’ll admit this and only this, he’s a different person than I thought he was.” 

Alex can picture the smug look on June’s face before she responds. “Well, that’s good.” In a rush, she adds, “And also I told you so.” 

“You told me that Henry is a better person than I thought he was?” 

“I don’t know about that, but I know that I’ve told you that you should try and get past your hatred for him because I didn’t think it was based on all that much.” 

“If you’re waiting for me to tell you that you’re right, you’re going to have to wait a while. I’ve already had to tell Henry that he’s right once this week, so that’s my limit.” 

June laughs so loudly that Alex has to pull the phone back from his ear. “I’ll just imagine you said it, then. Keep trying to enjoy your trip, okay?” 

“I will. Love you, Bug.” 

“Love you too, idiot.” 

“Jerk,” he says before hanging up. 

Once he’s sitting there, Alex gets a wild idea and decides to act on it before Henry gets back and stops him. He decides it’s time to see how far he can walk on his bum ankle. 

* * *

Henry’s running the same route he always runs, and as usual, he can’t get Alex out of his head. He pushes himself to run faster, but he can’t leave him behind. Spending all of his time with the man is making it even harder than normal. Seeing Alex crash land had scared the shit out of him. To see him act like his injury is no big deal is, perhaps, even more infuriating. This morning when Alex had pressed him on what was bothering him, he didn’t know how to tell him that two different arguments were battling it out in his head and he wasn’t sure which would win. On the one hand, Alex injuring himself meant that he wouldn’t join Henry on what would likely be another romantic excursion. On the other hand, Henry had liked the idea of Alex going with him much more than he should. 

It’s all a fucking mess. 

As happy as he is that Alex is getting to see the real side of him and consequently might hate him less, it’s rather killing him. Being that close to him is doing terrible things to Henry. It’s not like he could ever tell Alex how he feels. 

Even if sometimes he catches the way Alex’s eyes linger on him. 

Henry doesn’t go as far as he normally does. The stupid caretaker part of him gets worried about Alex doing something stupid and turns back. While he’s on his way back, his music gets interrupted by a phone call. 

“Hey, Pez.” 

“Hello, mate. How are things? Have you told Alex you love him yet?” 

“You’re such an asshole. Do you know that?” 

“It’s part of my charm.” 

“Sure.” 

“Okay, so tell me about your trip so far. You don’t even have to mention sweet Alex.” 

“Sweet isn’t the word I’d use,” Henry interjects. 

“Fine. Just tell me what you’ve been doing. I’m so bored without you here. Let me live vicariously through you.” 

“You realize, you sent me on this trip. You could have come with me.” 

“You’d hardly be having the time you’re having right now if I’d come with you. Besides, I knew you’d need some alone refresher time. I guess I just assumed you’d actually be alone. Anyway, ugh, just tell me what you’ve been up to.” 

Henry sighs, slowing down his run to a jog. “Well, I went on this trip to a different part of the island. There was lots of hiking and a waterfall. You’d be proud of me. I jumped off the waterfall.” 

“No shit. I am proud, you’re right. That sounds lovely. Was Alex with you?” Henry is silent. “Gonna take that long silence as a yes.” 

“He was,” Henry admits in a small voice. 

Pez chuckles to himself. “Tell me, have you done anything without him?” 

“Of course I have!” 

“Great, what?” 

“You know, I went to the beach.” 

“Did you just read on the beach?” 

“Fine, I did. But I’ve also been going on runs mostly alone and —” 

“Mostly? So does that mean he’s sometimes gone with you?” 

Henry groans. “Just once, okay.” He gets back toward the hotel, but he knows Pez is nowhere near ready for Henry to end the call. He sits in a chair at a table by the door. 

“Okay, be real with me,” Pez says, “how are things actually going?” 

Henry thinks over how to respond. Objectively, his trip’s been great. “It’s fine, Pez.” He can hear his friend grumbling. “Fine, but it’s all just a lot to handle. He hates me except when he doesn’t hate me. We’ve talked a lot more but I don’t know if that means he actually likes me now or is just putting his hatred aside so he can enjoy his own trip. I’m trying to be myself but there are still parts of myself that I obviously can’t reveal.” Henry sighs, running a hand through his hair. He grimaces, remembering that it’s sweaty. “Look, if I’m being honest, Pez, I’m miserable.” 

Pez huffs out a breath on the other end. Henry hears a scoff from nearby and turns in that direction. He sees Alex looking at him with disgust before turning and hobbling back inside the hotel. 

“Fuck,” Henry says. “Pez, I’ve got to go.” 

“Why?” 

“Because I’m pretty sure Alex just heard me. Fuck. I’ll talk to you later,” Henry says, rushing his friend off the phone before chasing after Alex. He thinks it shouldn’t be that hard to catch up to him since Henry’s not injured. 

He spots him by the elevator, pushing the button several times in a row. Henry takes off across the lobby, hoping to catch up to him. The elevator opens and Alex limps on, looking over his shoulder. He sees Henry closing in on the elevator and frantically jabs some button inside. The close button. The doors close just as Henry gets right to them. He looks to see what floors the other elevators are on before deciding to just take the stairs. 

Henry runs up the stairs as quickly as he can. He gets to the room and tries to open the door but the lock is on. It only opens a fraction before the chain stops it. “Fuck,” he breathes. “Alex, let me in!” 

“If you’re so miserable, why worry about getting back in here?” 

Henry groans, beating on the door. “Look, I know how that sounded, but I didn’t mean it that way.” 

“Sure you didn’t. It’s just Rio all over again.” 

“Wait, what?” 

“I was nice to you and you were a dick to me,” Alex tells him. “I don’t know why I thought you were actually different.” 

Henry leans his head against the door. He remembers Rio very differently, but he can hardly tell Alex that. “Please just let me in. It’s my room as well.” 

For whatever reason, Alex unhooks the chain, before stalking away, limping. “Fine.” 

“Alex, look, I’m sorry. But I didn’t mean that the way it sounded.” 

“Okay, so how did you mean it then?” He turns around on his good ankle, a glare on his face. 

Henry takes a deep breath, trying to come up with an explanation. “I was on the phone with my mate, Pez. And he’s so dramatic and I thought he wouldn’t want to hear about me actually having a good time. I told him you were here the first day you arrived and he called to ask how things were going so far. I just lied and told him I was miserable because I didn’t think he’d be satisfied if I told him we were getting along.” 

Alex watches him for a moment. “You were purposefully lying?” 

“Yes.” 

“That doesn’t make sense.” 

“You don’t know Pez, then. He thrives off drama.” Henry takes a hesitant step closer. “I’m not miserable. Truly. It’s been a good time.” 

“Whatever, it doesn’t matter.” 

“Let’s not do this. Alex, we were getting along. It was just a misunderstanding,” Henry pleads. He doesn’t think he can go back to the way they were the first day. It’s been such a pleasant change since Alex started willingly spending time with him. 

Alex sighs, sitting down on the couch. “I guess if you really didn’t mean it, then okay.” 

“At the risk of making you angrier, what did you mean by saying it was just like Rio?” 

Alex looks up at him, a confused look on his face. “You don’t remember?” 

“Remind me,” Henry tries. 

He rolls his eyes. “I went over to introduce myself to you and you shook my hand and then turned around to your handler and said ‘Get him away from me.’”

“Oh. I didn’t realize you’d heard that,” Henry says, for lack of anything better to say. 

Alex scoffs. “You realize that’s not really the point? It’s a dick thing to say whether I heard it or not.”

“Is that why you’ve always hated me?” Henry asks, his voice small. Suddenly, he feels like he has answers. Answers he’s always wanted.

“I didn’t really think I needed much more than that.” Alex tilts his head, rolling his eyes. “But it’s also not easy being the half-Mexican kid in the White House, constantly compared to the English prince.” 

“Look, I can’t speak to the world pitting us against each other,” Henry says, “but I can tell you that I didn’t mean for that to happen in Rio. Do you recall what I told you about the duties and responsibilities I get from my grandmother?” Alex nods. “That was one of them. I didn’t want to be there, to be around people. My dad had died fourteen months before and at that time, I was still sort of a dick to everyone.” 

Alex looks down at his hands, seemingly avoiding Henry’s gaze. 

“I’m sorry. For then and for what I said earlier. I didn’t mean it,” Henry tries again. 

“It’s fine.” Alex still isn’t looking at him. More than anything, Henry wants the easiness from before back. 

Henry stands up and walks toward the balcony. Just before the door, he stops and turns back. “I’m sorry. If you want to start doing everything separately again, I understand.” Without waiting for Alex’s reply, he walks out onto the balcony and sits in the same chair he’d occupied that morning. As he sits there, he runs his hand through his hair in frustration. It’s then that he remembers he’d just been for a run. A shower seems like a logical thing to go do, but he doesn’t want to move. He wants to sulk at how easy it is for him to ruin things. 

His hands are over his face, ready to muffle a groan at himself when the door to the balcony opens again and Alex limps out. He sits down in the chair next to Henry without so much as a word. He puts his feet up, imitating Henry’s position. 

“Did you have a good run?” he asks, looking out at the horizon.

“I’m sorry?” 

Alex clears his throat, looking over at Henry. “Did you have a nice run?” 

Henry wonders if his comment is an olive branch. “Er, yes, I did. Another good day for it.” 

Alex nods. “Nora can be dramatic too,” he says. “She likes to cause chaos. So, I kinda get it.” 

“Oh.” Henry can’t think of anything more to say. 

“And as for the rest…” Alex looks back at the horizon, “Well, it fits into the puzzle.” 

“What do you mean by that?” 

Alex shrugs. “I’ve been trying to figure you out since we both ended up here. Trying to figure out how the person here is so different from the person I thought I knew. And if you weren’t quite yourself when we first met, well, that certainly adds to it.” 

Henry sighs. “I don’t know that I would say I wasn’t myself,” he says, not sure why he’s correcting Alex when he was giving him a break. “I guess I’d say I was becoming my new self. If that makes any sense.” 

Alex nods, finally looking over at him again. “It does actually. I mean, I still have both my parents, but their divorce messed me up. So, I get it.” 

They’re silent for a stretch. Henry’s not sure where Alex truly stands and he doesn’t want to risk it. Finally, he can’t take the silence. It’s very strange for him to be the one to speak first. Especially with Alex. “So, you were in the lobby?” 

Alex smirks. “Yep. Didn’t hurt too much. I mean, running back toward the elevator did a bit.” Henry keeps his face pointedly blank. He’d like to remind Alex that it was  _ his  _ fault that he decided to run away, but he doesn’t want to shake the uneasy truce between them. “But I figure if I’m going to hike a mountain tomorrow, I need to be able to make it down to the lobby.” Henry opens his mouth to tell him once more that they don’t have to go. “We’re going,” Alex says before Henry can speak. 

“How does your ankle feel now?” 

“Not too bad.” He gives Henry an unsure look. “Actually, do you mind getting me some ice?” 

It’s the first time Alex has ever  _ asked _ Henry to do something for him, instead of Henry just volunteering. Somehow, it feels like a step in the right direction. Henry smiles and jumps up. 

He gives him the bag of ice and they sit out on the balcony together, passing a few hours the same way they had earlier. Alex insists they go down to the restaurant instead of getting room service  _ again _ . Henry thinks he really just wants to show off how he’s getting around, which is better than Henry expects, even if he sees Alex wince occasionally. 

When they’re going to bed that night, Alex moves toward the couch, but Henry stops him. “Take the bed,” he says. 

Alex gives him a look. “It’s my turn on the couch.” 

“You’re injured. Just go take the bloody bed,” Henry insists. Alex pretends to think about it for approximately one second before he grins and walks off toward the bedroom. 

Henry can’t sleep that night and lays awake thinking of all the other ways he could have explained that call to Alex. He doesn’t think he could tell him the actual truth, no matter how friendly they get. His mind is running away from him and he’s barely even trying to stop it. He thinks maybe he’s gotten too comfortable around Alex. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! I greatly appreciate the comments!


	7. The Hike

Alex is running on the beach, not even thinking about his ankle. He feels free and relaxed, the sea air in his hair. Up ahead, he spots Henry running ahead of him. A grin blooms on his face as Alex picks up his speed and chases after him. The distance between them closes quickly. 

“Hey!” Alex calls, making Henry turn around. He grins in reply, picking up his speed. He’s getting further away from Alex and he feels a tugging in his stomach, telling him to move faster, to get to him. Alex catches up to him again, this time, giving him a shove for good measure. Henry looks at him, a panicked look crossing his face as he loses his footing. His hands grab onto Alex as he falls down, dragging him along with him. 

Alex lands right on top of him, the two of them laying in the sand. For whatever reason, Alex feels no urgency to move. He stares down at Henry and both of their eyes are locked on each other. Alex leans down and presses his lips to Henry’s. There’s a sigh from Henry before he’s immediately kissing him back. Alex’s hand goes to his neck as he deepens the kiss quickly, his tongue finding its way into Henry’s mouth. He can hear and feel Henry groan beneath him and it’s everything. Both of their hands are roaming the other’s body. 

Henry’s the one to break away, gasping. “Not here,” he says. Alex looks around at the beach, noting that it’s pretty public. 

“I don’t think I can make it all the way upstairs,” he tells Henry. He sees the other man’s eyes darken as he nods. They stand up and Henry takes his hand, leading him off to a secluded corner. They’re essentially in an alley with just an employee entrance and no one seems to be around. 

Henry grins before he shoves him against the wall and kisses him hard. Their hands roam again, Alex’s finding their way down his shorts to cup the ass he’s stared at too many times. When his hands are there, he pulls Henry closer against him, feeling how hard he’s getting. They share a groan at the feeling of being pressed together. 

Alex pulls his hands out of his shorts and switches their positions, shoving him against the wall. He breaks away with a pop, giving Henry a smug grin before he drops down to his knees and pulls down his shorts. He looks up to him once, almost for permission. Henry nods, a desperate look on his face. Alex kisses his hip bone before he takes him in his mouth. Henry’s hand is tight in his hair as he moans his name out loudly. 

He sticks his own hand down his pants, taking care of himself at the same time. Henry notices, groaning at the sight, his hips stuttering forward. Alex looks up at him, holding his eyes. 

“Alex. Alex, I’m gonna —” 

And then Alex is back in his bed, panting as he opens his eyes. He looks around and Henry is nowhere around, likely out on the couch. “Holy shit,” Alex whispers. Glancing down, he can tell that the dream clearly had an effect on him. 

He thinks he probably won’t sleep the rest of the night. Instead, he’ll likely spend it overanalyzing what the fuck that all was. Why is he dreaming about Henry? 

The next morning, he’s maybe gotten a couple more hours of sleep when his brain wasn’t running on overdrive. He almost flinches when Henry walks in and smiles at him. “Good morning,” he says. Alex looks down to make sure the raging hard-on he’d had the night before was in fact gone. Henry doesn’t need to know about that. About any of it. 

When Henry walks out of the bathroom, he stops and sits on the edge of the bed. Alex scoots slightly away from him. “What were you thinking for breakfast?” 

Alex shrugs. “You can go on down without me. We probably don’t need to order room service again. Don’t want to give anyone the wrong idea,” he says, forcing out a laugh. Henry looks confused. 

“Well, I don’t mind waiting for you,” Henry offers. 

“It’s fine. I’m not that hungry. So you go on down. Don’t let me keep you,” Alex replies, hoping his voice sounds normal. To him, it sounds a bit high. 

Henry still watches him for a moment before shrugging. “All right. Well, just text me and I can bring something back up for you.” 

“Great, thanks,” Alex says, waving him off. Henry still looks confused, but walks out of his room and their suite itself. 

Alex lays back on the bed, sighing dramatically. He pulls out his phone and calls the one person he trusts to help him through this crisis he’s having. 

“Alex, it’s been so long. You’ve almost convinced me that you’re actually enjoying your trip,” Nora teases. 

“Nora!” Alex says. “I need your help.” 

“With what?” 

Alex looks to the living room, making sure Henry really did leave. Even so, he still whispers, “I had a sex dream about Henry.” 

There’s a small beat of silence before Nora starts laughing. “I was going to ask if you guys had gotten closer, but I guess that answers that.” 

“Nora, come on. I need your help!” 

“With what, Alex? People have sex dreams all the time. I know for a fact that this is not your first one,” she reminds him. 

“I know it’s not. But it’s weird! Why am I dreaming about  _ Henry  _ of all people?” 

“Well,” Nora says, “the way I see it is that there are two possible reasons why Henry is the subject of your naughty dreams. One, because you’re spending all your time with him. Or two, because it’s something you want.” 

Alex scoffs loudly. “Please! Come on, Nora. I called you because I was hoping you’d give me helpful suggestions. Like, what do I do now? I was so weird around him before he left for breakfast.” 

“Don’t “please” me. I’ll “please” you! Like, please, Alex, you’ve been Draco Malfoy level obsessed with him for years. I don’t feel like this comes from nowhere.” 

“I have not been obsessed with Henry,” Alex argues. 

“Do you think I wasn’t at the same wedding where you stared at him for most of the night from the other side of the room?” she asks. Alex thinks back on the wedding. Did he really stare at Henry that much? Enough for Nora to notice?

“That’s just...I was debating whether or not to go over and annoy him,” Alex tells her. Based on the clucking sound she makes, she doesn’t believe him. 

“Okay, then let’s talk about how you were so mad when you found out he was in Hawaii too, but you haven’t even tried to call us in days, and June told me last night that you’ve been getting along.” 

“You said you weren’t going to answer the phone. Why would I try and call you if you weren’t going to answer?” 

“Fair, but still. Have you been spending time with Henry?” 

“Yes,” Alex says in a small voice. 

“Have you been having a good time?” Alex is silent. “So, that’s a yes.” She sighs on the other end. “Look, it can be up to you. Your dream could mean nothing or it could mean something.” 

“Why would it mean something? I’m str…” He trails off, unsure. 

“Are you about to say you’re straight?” Nora asks. 

“Do you think I am?” Alex asks her. 

“You know I can’t answer that for you,” she tells him. “But let me ask you this, is Henry the first guy you’ve ever had a dream about? Or the first one you caught yourself staring at for a long time?” 

Alex thinks through her questions. Both have a resounding  _ no  _ if he really thought about it. “Nora,” he says in almost a whisper, “Do you think I’m bi?” 

Nora sighs again. “Like I said, I can’t answer that for you, Alex. How about you tell me this, do you like Henry?” 

“Nora —” Alex starts to argue before she cuts him off. 

“I don’t mean like  _ that _ ,” she says, “I mean just as a person.” 

Alex thinks back on the last few days, especially how Henry has taken care of him. He thinks about his totally unproportional response to hearing Henry say he was miserable. Maybe he  _ does _ like Henry. It would certainly explain the weird feelings when he saw him running. Or the strange comfort Alex feels when he’s nearby. He was so angry when he heard Henry talking to Pez. Maybe he really does like him. 

“Yeah, I guess so. He’s a better person than I thought he was,” Alex tells her. 

“Well, the fact that you just admitted that to me is significant.” 

Alex sighs, running his hand through his hair. “I mean, objectively, he’s always been attractive,” Alex says, making Nora snort. “Shut up.” While Nora apologizes, his mind goes to the magazine. He was drawn to Henry even when they were still just kids. Has he always been drawn to him?

“Can I just say that I’m very glad to be the person who gets this call?” Nora teases. 

Alex laughs. “Who else would I call?” 

“You know, you haven’t told me any details about this dream.” 

“And I won’t be doing that.” 

“When did you become such a prude? Come on, it was just a dream. How did it go down?” 

“Nora, I’m not going to tell you.” 

“Did Dream Alex enjoy it? Which boy in the dream initiated? Did Dream Henry like it?” 

“Nora, just drop it.” 

“I take that to mean that  _ real  _ Alex did in fact enjoy this dream.” 

“I’m going to hang up,” Alex threatens. 

“I don’t know why you won’t just tell me,” Nora says. “Where did it happen in the dream?” 

Alex isn’t sure why he actually tells her. “The beach.” 

“Oooh. Sounds hot. Was it hot?” 

Alex is silent. 

“Come on. Was it hot?” 

His response is almost unintelligible. “Yes.” 

Nora laughs loudly. “ _ I knew it! _ ” 

“Look, Nora, I don’t —” He cuts off when he hears a sound outside the door. “I’ve gotta go. I think he’s here.” 

“Tell your boyfriend hi!” 

“I hate you.” 

They hang up just in time and the door swings open, Henry walking in, balancing a plate on his hand. “You didn’t text me, so I just got you a bit of everything.” He sets the plate down in front of Alex. 

Alex barely meets his eyes. “Thanks.” 

Henry gives him an odd look before he walks back to the couch. 

Alex takes some time to chill out before he goes and hangs out with Henry in the living room. They don’t do much during the day, eventually moving out to the balcony again. Alex tried suggesting they go do something, but Henry insists that they don’t want to tire out his ankle. He also offers about 20 times to do the hike another day. Alex should really take him up on the offer, but instead, he digs his heels in and insists that they’re going. 

So around 2:00, they leave their room to go for their hike. Henry is still offering to turn around and Alex just rolls his eyes and walks past him. The longer he’s been around Henry today, the more he’s gotten the dream out of his head. It helps. 

It starts out easy, a gentle incline. Henry keeps coming up with reasons that they need to take breaks during their hike. He’ll stop to take a picture, but for some reason, he makes them stop for five minutes. Alex knows what he’s doing — he’s trying to let Alex rest so he doesn’t hurt his ankle more. Somehow, it’s not really bothering him that much. Maybe the breaks are helping, but he’ll never admit that to Henry. 

When they start walking again after the third or fourth break, Henry walks in front of him and Alex’s eyes drift down a bit. He sighs and runs a hand down his face, picking up his pace a bit so he’s not watching Henry’s body. Maybe the dream isn’t totally out of his mind. Earlier, Henry’d given Alex his hand to help him across a rock and Alex had stared at it for too long, remembering the same hand tugging at his hair in his dream. He’d shaken it off, but images pop into his head every now and then. 

He hates it. 

But weirdly, he thinks Nora gave him a different realization. He doesn’t think he hates Henry anymore. The more they talk, the more comfortable Alex gets around him. The more he continues to realize that Henry is a person he can get along with. A person he likes. 

“So do you hike much?” Alex asks, the silence making him feel itchy. 

Henry glances over at him. “Not much hiking to do in London. Especially as a member of the Royal Family. But we do some of it when we got to Scotland, I suppose.” 

“Of course, what with multiple households,” Alex teases. Henry smirks. “How often do you go up to Scotland?” 

Henry shrugs. “Not all that often.” He looks over at Alex again as they keep moving. “Do you hike much?” 

“I used to. My dad would find cool places to take us,” Alex tells him. 

“Ah, yes, because jumping off cliffs is your thing,” Henry recalls with a smile. 

Alex is a bit blown away that Henry remembers things he’s said. “Yeah, exactly.” 

They talk in spurts as they keep hiking. Henry still makes Alex take breaks every so often. Alex is becoming a bit more grateful for them. Even if his ankle is sore, he’ll never admit it to Henry. And he’ll certainly never tell him that a few miles back, he realized that he should have taken Henry up on the offer to go another day. He can’t let Henry know he’s right, though. So Alex takes breaks when Henry tells him and pretends he’s fine. 

It’s all worth it when they get to the top and see the incredible view Henry had been promised. Both of them stand there in silence, looking over the rest of the island, down to the water, and all the beauty in between.

“Wow,” Alex says stupidly. 

“Yeah.” 

“Okay, so that person wasn’t lying. This is gorgeous,” Alex says. He looks all around, to the top of the mountain overlooking the sea, to the trees behind them, promising more rainforest. Henry is staring at it all, a look of awe on his face. Alex grins at the sight of him. He’s more than glad that he forced Henry to go today. 

Alex pulls out his phone and snaps some pictures. June will definitely want to see this. He starts to pose for a selfie when Henry grabs his phone from him. He directs Alex on where to stand to get the best image and Alex happily complies. Eventually, they switch positions and Alex takes pictures of him. 

Henry stands near the edge, shaking his head in awe at how beautiful it really is. The sun is just starting its descent. Alex sits against the base of a tree, several yards back from the edge and just watches. Mainly, he’s watching Henry, but no one needs to know that. 

When Henry turns his head, he sees where Alex is sitting and joins him on the ground, their shoulders touching once Henry settles. He sighs, leaning his head back against the tree. “Do you ever think about what it would be like to be a normal person?” 

Alex looks over at him, unsure where this is coming from. “Not really.” 

Henry just hums in reply. Apparently, he does think about that. Alex watches him, wondering what Henry would be like as a normal person. He would still stick out just as much, Alex thinks. Those looks catch the eye no matter what. Alex shakes his head at his own realization. Maybe Nora was right; maybe he is attracted to Henry. 

Now isn’t the time to have those thoughts. It’s not like it matters anyway. He thinks about all the times he’s seen pictures of Henry with random women in June’s tabloids. 

“What would you do if you were a normal person?” Alex asks. 

Henry looks over at him, an odd look in his eye before he turns back to the scenery. “A lot of things.” He crosses his arms. “If my life wasn’t ruled by my grandmother’s iron fist, I’m not sure I’d keep anything the same.” 

He’s being vague and Alex wants to know why. While Henry’s watching the sun’s slow decline, Alex finds himself watching Henry. What is he not saying? Henry stands up to take some more pictures and Alex still watches him. Finally, he stands up himself and walks to be next to Henry. Apparently, he can’t stay away from him. 

While he’s watching the sunset, the nature of this little tour hits him. Alex can’t keep it to himself. “You know, under different circumstances, this would be pretty romantic,” he tells Henry. He still isn’t sure why he feels the need to voice that. It’s doing nothing but putting images in his head, confusing ones he doesn’t need. 

“Yes, it is,” Henry says in a small voice. 

Alex realizes he’s watching Henry again and forces himself to look out at the sunset, the beautiful colors painted across the sky, reflected in the water. He snaps a few more pictures on his phone before he turns back to Henry and takes one of him watching the view as well. “I’m sorry it’s me you have to be on such a romantic trip with,” he says, though he doesn’t know why. 

Henry looks over at him, an almost sad look on his face. Alex doesn’t want him to look sad, but he doesn’t know what to say. He flashes Henry a smile and walks back to the tree, leaning against it. After a few minutes, Henry leans against the tree too. 

“It’s not so bad being here with you,” Henry says softly. 

Alex grins, looking over at him. “Oh yeah? And why’s that?” 

Henry turns to look at him and Alex can’t read the look in his eyes. There’s something big there and Alex wants to know what it is. He doesn’t look away. He can’t. 

Suddenly, before Alex can process what he’s doing, Henry’s hands are on either side of his face and he’s kissing him. Alex’s back hits the tree behind him as Henry presses in closer. Alex is stunned, unsure of how he’s really responding. He just feels like his brain is short circuiting. Slowly, he leans into him and Henry deepens the kiss. His tongue finds Alex’s as his hand slides back into Alex’s hair. His mind provides the dream image of Henry pulling on Alex’s hair. Alex makes some noise at the feeling, horribly close to a moan. 

The sound pulls Henry back and his eyes are wide, a panicked look on his face. He lets go of Alex like his hands are burned. Henry’s apologizing quickly before he simply turns and runs from him. 

Alex feels dazed. The last 24 hours have been insane. He brings a hand to his lips, conjuring the feeling of Henry’s lips there, real and not a dream. He looks over to the path where Henry is disappearing. 

“Shit.”

And he takes off after him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the comments! I hope you're still enjoying this one! Thank you for reading!


	8. The Aftermath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the nice comments so far! I hope you enjoy this next chapter!

All the weird feelings that Alex has been fighting since he and Henry have been stuck together suddenly make sense to him. He’s running after Henry as best he can on his bum ankle. 

“Henry! Stop!” he yells. It does nothing to slow the other man down. Alex groans and tries to pick up his speed. Running  _ down _ a mountain seems like a dumb idea. 

His mind can’t stop reeling. If he wasn’t so intent on catching up to Henry, he might stop and take the time to process things. But he can’t. If Henry reaches the bottom of the mountain without him, Alex isn’t sure what he’ll do next. He sure as hell didn’t see that kiss coming. But the thing that surprises him the most is that he’s not upset about it. He’s almost desperate to catch up to Henry to tell him that. 

And maybe kiss him again. 

The dream keeps flashing in his mind and his very strong reaction to it. If he really thinks about it, he enjoyed kissing Henry. It all makes sense suddenly — his ridiculous reaction to seeing Henry running on the beach, the weird comfort of having him there when Alex crash landed, the easiness between them once he really put his hatred aside. He’s attracted to Henry. 

Part of him wonders how long that’s been the case and he didn’t realize it. 

“Henry! Wait!” he yells. 

He rolls his eyes seeing Henry’s form working his way through the trees, well ahead of him. Suddenly, Alex gets an idea. It’s, perhaps, a dick move, but it’s his only move. He stops, bending over, leaning an arm against a nearby tree, and yells in fake pain. “Oh God, my ankle!” he screams. Peeking one eye open, he looks down the path to see if Henry has stopped. It looks like he has. He hasn’t turned around, but he’s frozen in place. “Oh my God, ow!” he yells again, for good measure. 

He tries to fight the smug grin on his face when he sees Henry sprint back up to him. “Are you okay? Did you hurt your ankle again?” Henry asks, pointedly not looking in his eyes. 

“Yeah, I’m fine actually,” Alex says, standing up straight. “It was the only thing I could think of to stop you.” Henry looks up at him, a searing glare on his face. He turns from Alex, but Alex is quicker this time. He grabs Henry’s arm and pulls him back. “Would you just stop?” 

Henry’s back to not meeting his eyes. “Just let me go,” he says in a dejected tone. 

“No,” Alex says. Being stubborn was always bound to pay off one day. “You didn’t even give me a chance to —” 

“To what?” Henry asks, his head hanging, his face looking down. 

Alex doesn’t answer him. Well, not in words. He takes Henry’s face in his hands and kisses him hard. Henry is frozen against him and Alex panics just a little. But then he kisses him back, even better than before. He wraps his arms around Alex and kisses him like it’s his life’s mission. Alex smirks into it, his hands gripping Henry’s shirt. He walks them back slightly, turning them around and pressing Henry against a tree, leaning into him. Henry gasps softly as his back hits the tree, but doesn’t break their kiss. 

It’s a good thing that their path was pretty isolated, because Alex has no space in his mind for anything other than Henry. 

He breaks away for a second, panting slightly. “To do that,” he breathes, grinning at Henry. Henry grins back before pulling him back into a bruising kiss. His hands have started to roam Alex’s body and Alex takes that as his cue to do the same. He gets his hands under Henry’s shirt and nearly groans as he runs them up and down his torso. Henry’s fingers are tight in Alex’s hair as he deepens their kiss. Alex thinks maybe it’s the best kiss he’s ever had. It’s fine. 

The sound of voices down the path carry up to them and they break apart, looking at each other. There were multiple vantage points, and they somehow picked the most isolated one. Alex wonders if that happened because they were the prince and the first son. His mind can’t really focus on anything other than the feel of Henry’s hands at his waist. 

“We should probably go,” Henry whispers. Alex looks at him and nods. He takes a step back, grinning at how wrecked Henry looks. He feels a bit of pride at the sight. Henry must read his mind. “You should look at yourself,” he says, stepping past him onto the path. 

Alex glances down, grimacing a bit. “Hmm. Basketball shorts really don’t hide anything do they?” Henry chuckles in reply. 

They walk in silence down the mountain. This time, when Alex falls behind, he has no qualms about staring at Henry’s body. He keeps trying to think of something to say, but neither of them speak. What do you say to the person you used to hate — or maybe just  _ thought  _ you hated — and now have made out with and want to make out with again? He can’t think of many instances of examples for this. 

Henry glances back at him, one eyebrow raised. For a second, Alex wonders if he can hear his thoughts. “How’s the ankle?” Henry asks, slowing down a bit so Alex can fall in line with him. 

Alex laughs and looks down at his feet. He hasn’t thought about it in a while. “It’s fine,” he says. 

“Alex, really.” 

He looks over at Henry and grins. “No, really, my ankle feels fine.” Henry nods, even if he seems like he doesn’t believe Alex. He thinks about the breaks they took along the way up the mountain. Glancing around the path, he sees some people down below them from a converging route. He looks over to the trees next to them, lush and full. “Actually, I wouldn’t mind a break,” Alex says. 

He walks off the path and into the thick of the trees, Henry right behind him. Waiting until they’re far enough off the path to be hidden, Alex turns around and grabs him, kissing him again. A surprised huff leaves Henry before he’s returning the kiss fully. He turns his head, planting a string of kisses down Alex’s neck. “What happened to going back?” he asks between kisses. 

Alex grabs his hair, his arms wrapped around him. “I guess I couldn’t wait,” he says, gasping at a small bite. Henry soothes it with his tongue. This was maybe a mistake. He can feel himself growing hard. Feeling a bit devious, he reaches down and palms the front of Henry’s shorts. He can feel him gasp against him. He leans into Alex’s hand before quickly backing away. 

“We can’t,” Henry says. 

“What?” Alex steps closer to him, but Henry backs away again. 

“Not  _ here _ ,” he clarifies. “Anyone could walk by.” 

Alex rolls his eyes, even if he knows Henry’s right. His mother would literally murder him if he got caught with  _ anyone _ right now. He can’t imagine how much worse it would be if he was caught with the prince of another country. “Fine,” Alex sighs. Henry nods, letting Alex step closer to him. Alex grabs him by the shirt and goes in to kiss him, but stops just before their lips touch. “But the second we get back to our room, I’m doing some very dirty things to you.” He hears the small gasp from Henry and grins, pressing his lips to his one more time before stalking out of their hiding place. 

Alex doesn’t process much as they continue their way down the mountain other than the fact that his hands are itching to be on Henry’s body. Henry’s talking to fill space, but Alex is barely listening. He keeps thinking about everything Nora said to him earlier, asking if Henry was the first time he’d ever caught himself staring at another guy. 

He’s definitely not the first guy. The things he did with Liam in high school flash back to his mind like an embarrassing montage. That should have been a dead giveaway that he wasn’t quite as straight as he thought he was. He thinks about staring at Henry’s picture in a magazine and how often he snuck back into June’s room to look at it. Hell, he thinks about seeing Henry at the Olympics and his first thought was of how attractive he was before he shoved that down and focused on how rude Henry was. 

Then there’s  _ everything _ that’s happened since they’ve been in Hawaii together. That first night when they sat in the hotel restaurant and talked, Alex saw a new side of him and he couldn’t get it out of his head. He hasn’t been able to the whole time. Maybe this is why. Maybe this version of Henry is easily coalesced with his likely long-simmering attraction to him that he always mistook for hate. Now he has a name for the ugly feeling that coursed through him when he thought Henry was miserable with him.

A nervous energy runs through Alex when they’re finally down the mountain and walking back through their hotel lobby. It takes everything in him not to throw himself against Henry when the elevator doors close and it’s just the two of them.  _ It could open on any floor _ , he tells himself repeatedly. The walk from the elevator to their room has never seemed so long. 

Henry opens the door and Alex almost feels giddy with excitement as he follows him in. The door is barely closed before Henry is shoving him up against it, his mouth back on Alex’s. Henry’s kissing him roughly, with his teeth, and Alex is losing his mind a bit. He’s giving back just as good as Henry’s giving. He moves to Henry’s neck and can feel his grip tighten on him. Henry drags his mouth back to his and kisses him deeply. 

Alex pushes off the door, not breaking their kiss, and tries to navigate them to the couch. It’s not seamless, as they don’t care enough to break apart and look where they’re going. Finally, Alex shoves Henry down on the couch and in the next instant, sits on his lap, straddling him. He looks down at Henry for a split second, noting the desire in his eyes, before he kisses him again. 

They kiss for a time longer than Alex cares to count. Henry rips his shirt off him and kisses him again, his hands roaming Alex’s body freely. Alex grinds down on Henry and relishes the sounds coming from him. When he goes back to kissing him after ripping Henry’s shirt off, a thought occurs to Alex:  _ it’s never been this good before _ . Unsure of what to do with that, he just leans in closer and kisses Henry like his life depends on it. 

He wonders if maybe it does. 

Henry breaks away for a moment, looking up at Alex with an almost nervous expression. Alex raises one brow. Henry swallows thickly and sticks his chin out. “Get on the bed,” he says. Alex grins, somehow happy to take his orders. He leads the way through their suite to the bedroom, laying himself down on the bed, giving Henry a look. 

Henry barely hesitates before he’s stretched out on top of him. They’re kissing again, the weight of Henry welcome on him. He feels his hand run down his chest and past the waistband of his shorts. He breaks the kiss, breathing heavily against Henry’s neck as he feels the man’s hand close around him. A string of curses flows from his lips before Alex stops him and flips them over, noting the shocked look on Henry’s face. 

He pins Henry’s arms next to him as he kisses his way down his chest. When he reaches Henry’s waistband, he looks up to him, a question in his eyes. Henry takes a deep breath and nods. Alex grins and kisses the spot just above his pants before he pulls them down. 

Alex looks up to him again, almost feeling nervous. “I’ve, uh, never actually done this before,” he admits, running his hands up Henry’s thighs. 

“You don’t have to —” Henry starts. 

“No,” Alex says, interrupting him. “No, I want to. I just...well, it just may not be very good. Just tell me if it’s awful.” 

Henry breathes out a laugh that morphs into something else as Alex takes him in his mouth. His hand is tight in Alex’s hair. At the back of his mind, the dream is right there. He watches Henry as he goes, gauging his reaction. He can hear some of the things he’s saying, various expletives and such all sung to the ceiling. His eyes meet Alex’s and he holds them, both of them watching each other raptly. Eventually, Henry’s elbow gives out and he collapses against the bed, his hand yanking on Alex’s hair as he finishes. 

Alex crawls up the bed next to him and Henry kisses him deeply. He wonders if that means he did an alright job, then. Henry rolls him onto his back and keeps kissing him, rolling his body against his. Soon, Henry is happily returning the favor and Alex is losing his mind. 

They settle next to each other, both of them breathing heavily, neither of them saying anything. Alex looks over at him and Henry turns his head as well. Alex grins, pleased when Henry matches him. He leans in and kisses him slowly, unhurriedly. 

As he’s falling asleep, another round later, Alex thinks this is what they should have been doing the whole time. 

* * *

Henry can hear Alex’s deep breathing, knowing for sure he’s asleep. He runs a hand down his face, wondering what the fuck actually happened here. Honestly, he’s not sure what made him lean in and kiss Alex, other than the fact that he’s been wanting to do so for years. But the last thing he expected was for Alex to chase after him and kiss him back. Well...and what happened afterward. He certainly never expected that. 

The only issue is that Henry has no idea where they go from here. He’s wanted Alex since the day they fucking met, but Alex has always hated him. Is that suddenly over? Does he want him now or was this just some fun? He wishes he could be like Alex and just find sleep so easily, but he knows he won’t. 

His back is turned to Alex, distancing himself from everything. It’s not going to hurt when Alex says it’s just a vacation fling if Henry treats it that way from the start. He can shove his feelings for Alex down so far that he can’t feel them, that he can just enjoy what little time Alex will give him. And if that means he’s shutting off half of himself, that’s fine. No one needs to know how deep he was before Alex ever even touched him. 

They’re sharing the bed and Henry wants nothing more than to wrap himself around Alex, but he can’t. If nothing more than just protecting himself, he can’t. He glances over his shoulder and sees Alex’s beautiful face so calm and serene in sleep. He wants that for himself, rather than this storm. 

He shakes his head, settling in further on his side. “It’s nothing,” Henry whispers to himself. 

There’s a soft sound of Alex’s breath catching. Henry freezes, waiting to move until he hears Alex’s deep breathing again. 

Instead, he feels Alex’s arms wrap around him, his body slotting into place behind him. Henry shifts, allowing himself this if Alex initiated it. His arms close around Alex’s and he leans into his warmth. 

It’s going to hurt like hell later, but for now, it’s just perfect. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!


	9. The Morning After

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoa, sorry for that delay in chapters. The quarantine lack of motivation is REAL! Anyway, here's a new chapter! Hope you enjoy!

Henry wakes slowly the next morning. He’s in the bed, but not much else is processing. It’s not until he realizes that he’s naked under the sheets that he remembers the events of the day before. Sitting up, he runs a hand down his face with a small groan. He still can’t believe he kissed Alex. He has no idea what actually came over him in that moment. But given everything that happened after, maybe he should have done so a long time ago. 

Taking a deep breath, he looks over at the other side of the bed only to find it empty. There’s a seed of disappointment taking root inside of him. He wonders if he imagined Alex curling around him the night before. Maybe he’d woken up and decided not to share a bed with Henry and had gone out to the couch. Maybe he is regretting everything that happened. 

It doesn’t surprise Henry. This is why he keeps most of his life a secret hidden behind press smiles and feigned boredom. Because when he actually takes the step to reveal truths about himself, it inevitably backfires. 

His mind is moving too fast. He’s planning ways to just get out of there before he has to have some awkward run in with Alex. Surely there’s another room at the hotel if he wants to finish his vacation. But, honestly, he’s not sure what there’s left to finish. He might as well just pack it up and run away back to England. There are no Alexes there to hide from. He can just forget this all happened. 

Henry lays there for a moment longer, wanting to commit the feeling of being in Alex's arms to memory before he has to run away from it all. He’s about to pull back the covers and hunt for his clothes when the door to the bathroom opens. 

“Oh, hey. You’re awake.” Alex says. 

Henry’s frozen in place, watching him. “Hi,” he replies in a small voice. Desperately trying to read Alex’s mood, he watches as he walks around the room, going about his business. Alex walks out into the front room and rifles through his suitcase. Henry’s still sitting frozen in bed. He wonders if Alex is just going to kick him out. 

He walks back in wearing shorts and a t-shirt. Part of Henry is disappointed that he’s put actual clothes on. The other part of Henry reminds him that it’s about to end anyway. He should be thankful for what he got. 

“Okay, so, I called downstairs, and —” Alex starts before a knock at the door cuts him off. He looks over his shoulder and holds up a finger to Henry before taking off toward the door. 

Is it possible that he already called the front desk and asked for separate rooms? Henry throws himself back down against the pillow. It’s one thing for it to be  _ his  _ choice to leave and run from Alex, but for Alex to kick him out? Well, that just seems like too much. He’s a mess of contradictions, but the idea that Alex is about to kick him out on his ass hurts more than he can express. Apparently the concept of a vacation fling didn’t get as deep into his brain as it should have. 

Henry closes his eyes as he hears footsteps approaching the room again. He doesn’t want to face Alex as he gets ejected. 

“Okay, so I called downstairs and ordered us breakfast,” Alex says, sitting down at the foot of the bed. Henry opens his eyes and sees the plates in Alex’s hands. “I got you the same omelet you got the other day. I hope that’s okay.” 

Henry stares at him for a long time. “Er, sure. Yes, that’s good.” He reaches out and takes the plate from him, his eyes still lingering on Alex. 

“Good,” Alex says, setting his own plate on his lap. “Also, Mother Nature is throwing us a bone today.” 

Henry frowns at him between bites of his breakfast. “How so?” 

Alex jumps up and walks over to the curtains, throwing them wide open. Henry tears his gaze from Alex to see the rain pouring down outside their window. “It’s a torrential downpour,” Alex says with a grin. 

“Why is that great?” Henry asks dumbly. 

“Well, because there’s no reason to feel guilty for staying in the room all day when the weather looks like that.” 

His eyes follow Alex as he walks back to the bed. “Is that what’s happening, then?” Henry asks. 

An almost sheepish look crosses Alex’s face. Henry wouldn’t have thought he could make an expression like that. He shrugs, staring down at his plate. “I don’t know. I guess the thought occurred to me after last night,” Alex says in a small voice. 

So maybe Henry isn’t going to have to get that other room. 

Henry grins at him around a bite of omelet. “Well okay, then.” 

Alex’s head whips up, looking at him with an excited smile. “Good.” 

An oddly comfortable silence fills the room as they eat their breakfasts. Henry can feel Alex’s eyes on him and he finds the courage to look up and hold his gaze. When he takes in Alex’s expression, it’s all he can do not to lunge across the bed and kiss him madly. Instead, he finishes his omelet and watches as the look changes on the other man’s face. 

Alex clears his head and gets an awkward look on his face. “Can I ask you something?” Henry nods. “It might be kind of uncomfortable.” 

“Why would it be uncomfortable? Is it because I’m stark naked under this blanket?” Henry asks with a grin. 

Alex returns the grin, his eyes drifting over Henry’s exposed chest. “No, not because of that. Just because...well, I don’t know if it’s something you’d want to talk about.” 

“Alex, you can ask me anything,” Henry assures him. He finds he really means it too. 

He sets his plate aside and stretches out on the bed, looking over at Henry. “I mentioned before that my sister is really into tabloids,” Alex reminds him. Henry nods. “And she makes me look at different things sometimes. And I remember — for that reason  _ only  _ — that I’ve seen a lot of pictures of you with girls. Never guys.” 

“Ahh,” Henry says, leaning back against the pillows. “Yes, well that’s the beauty of the monarchy.” 

“So that’s one of those parts of yourself that you have to hide away because of your family? You can’t tell people that you’re…” he trails off. 

“Gay?” Henry finishes for him. “Yeah, I’m afraid not.” 

“That’s terrible!” 

Henry shrugs. “It’s all I know. I mean, it would be nice to be myself out in the open, but I don’t think it’ll happen.” 

“Ever?” 

“My family isn’t like yours, Alex.” 

Alex is quiet for a moment. “No one in my family knows,” he admits in a small voice. 

“Not even June?” 

“Based on things Nora’s told me, I think she and June might suspect, but no. Granted, my bisexuality has been a more recent revelation. I mean, I don’t think my parents would make me hide it. Although, my mom is up for re-election, so…” 

“Is that why you haven’t told anyone?” Henry asks. 

Alex makes a weird face and just shrugs in reply. Henry can’t help but wonder what that means. “So how do you do it?” Alex asks. 

“Do what?” 

“Hide it all away?” 

Henry’s never been asked something like that. He’s not really sure how to respond. With a sigh, he thinks over his answer. Eventually, he shrugs. “I don’t know. I guess it’s all I’ve ever known. There was never a time that I ever really got to be...out, so it’s not like I had to run back into the closet. Even at uni, I had to keep it all hidden. So…” 

The weight of Alex’s gaze makes Henry feel uncomfortable. Slowly, he pushes his plate out of his way and nearly crawls across the bed and straddles Henry’s lap. “Well, I guess we’ll just have to do something that would make your grandmother die of horror if she knew.” 

Alex is leaning in but Henry pulls back, his nose wrinkled. “I’m sorry, are you trying to seduce me by mentioning my grandmother?” 

Alex’s head tips back as he laughs. “That wasn’t really sexy, was it?” 

Henry shakes his head, matching Alex’s laughter. “No, not really.” 

His hands come up to cup Henry’s face and he leans in close. “I guess I’ll just have to kiss you until you forget about everything else.” 

“There you go,” Henry breathes before crashing his lips against Alex’s. 

He can feel Alex grinning into the kiss. Pushing Henry back, he lays them down, his body moving against him. He shifts to plant a string of kisses against his neck and Henry pulls at his shirt. “Why on earth did you feel the need to put clothes on?” Henry whines. 

Alex chuckles at his collarbone, licking a stripe and making Henry gasp softly. “I had to answer the door,” Alex reminds him as he kisses his way up the other side of Henry’s neck. 

Henry’s arms close around Alex, his hand winding up into his hair. “I’m fairly certain robes were invented for that reason,” Henry retorts, but he’s not sure how. Alex pulls back, laughing at him and Henry takes that moment to strip the t-shirt off of him. He lets his eyes graze the man’s chest, his hands traveling the same path. Alex leans back in and kisses him greedily. Henry can’t believe that when he woke up, he thought he’d never get to have this again. He’s very glad he was just overreacting. 

Alex grinds his hips against Henry’s and lets out a whine. “There are too many layers between us.” 

Henry’s hands fly to his waistline, pushing at his shorts. “Well then get these off.  _ Now. _ ” 

There’s a flash of something in Alex’s eyes as he grins down at Henry. “Bossy. I like it.” 

Henry shoves down his shorts as far as they’ll go before Alex has to move. “Good. I can work with that.” 

Alex moves to his knees to pull off his shorts. Henry takes advantage of the moment and pushes him onto his back on the bed. He emerges from the blankets and climbs on top of him, relishing the groan from Alex as their bodies connect. The look in his eye when Henry pins his wrists above his head is even better. He kisses, licks, and bites his way down the man’s body until he gets to where they both want him. 

After a few strokes, he takes him in his mouth and listens eagerly to the cries coming from Alex. He may have had to keep it all a secret, but Henry’s certainly learned how to pleasure a man and he’s more than pleased to show Alex how skilled he is. From the sounds he’s getting, he thinks he’s still just as good. 

He swallows him down, even when he finishes down his throat. Henry throws himself down on the bed next to Alex, looking over at him, thinking he’s feeling the same amount of bliss right now. Alex flops his head over and grins at him as he keeps panting. 

“Holy shit,” he breathes. 

Henry can’t help but feel smug at his reaction. Alex lays there for a long time in silence as his breath evens out. “You know, I think this is the quietest I’ve ever seen you,” Henry remarks with a sly grin. 

Alex glares at him. “Fuck off.” He reaches out and pokes Henry’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. I’ll get my revenge.” He closes his eyes for a moment. “Just give me a second.” 

Henry rolls over and kisses his cheek, still wearing that grin. “Take all the time you need.” He moves off the bed and walks to the bar in the front room. 

“You are such an asshole,” Alex calls from the bedroom. Henry laughs to himself as he fixes them both a drink. Who cares if it’s before noon? It’s vacation and he’s having the time of his life. 

* * *

It rains for most of the day and Alex doesn’t even mind. When you begin the morning with a literal mind blowing encounter with a fucking  _ prince,  _ nothing else really seems to matter. The rest of the day is spent the way Alex predicted, with them choosing not to leave their room and instead focusing on exploring each other’s bodies. Hands down, it’s the best day of vacation so far. 

At the end of the day, Alex is still wide awake, but Henry is passed out. Alex can’t help but watch him sleep, marvelling at the person he now realizes Henry is. He wonders if he should be taking more time to process the fact that he’s realized he’s bisexual. But then he looks back over at Henry and he feels right in what they’re doing. Alex will have plenty of time to process everything and what it means for his life when he’s back in D.C., but he only has so much time left with Henry. And given the way things have progressed in the last day, he’s going to focus on just that, just Henry. 

The man is a total fucking surprise. Who knew that the Prince of England was not only gay, but gave a blowjob like it was his life’s devotion, his sole purpose to make Alex feel boneless and incredible. Since the first day he and Henry ended up in this room together, Alex has been realizing over and over again that he’s so much different than what he thought. Like, a completely different person. It makes him sad to realize that Henry has essentially hidden his entire self, all the good parts of him, from the public because he  _ had  _ to. 

At the same time, he’s glad he’s gotten the chance to see all these other sides. No matter what else happens, he’s happy he got to know the real prince. 

Alex scooches down in the bed, laying down behind Henry whose back is turned to him. He’d done the same thing last night too. Alex woke up this morning, curled around him, feeling surprised but comfortable. He does the same thing now, curling himself around Henry, holding him close while he can. He’s not sure what all these feelings are, honestly. Attraction, for sure. Probably some lust in there as well. But he doesn’t really have feelings for Henry. It’s just physical. Surely. He closes his eyes and shuts out the voices trying to analyze everything he’s feeling. 

That can wait until D.C. too. 


	10. The Questions

The next few days pass in almost a routine. They wake up wrapped around each other, starting the morning the right way before they even leave the bed. Alex decides it’s a good thing he’s never counted how many rounds they’ve had. Either way, he’d have probably lost count by now. Alex is going to have a hard time not waking up to Henry and his wonderful mouth when he’s back in D.C. and Henry’s back in London. 

He’s trying not to linger on their impending departure. The problem is that he doesn’t know what it holds for them. And how do you bring that up with someone you thought you straight up hated at the beginning of the trip? Especially when neither of you are out to the public and belong to some of the biggest name families in the world? It’s a bit tricky, but he thinks he can figure it out. 

One day, Alex tests putting weight on his ankle and decides he feels good enough for a run. It’s been too long since he’s been on a run with Henry. Neither of them have gone for a run since their hike. With a grin, Alex mentally notes that they’ve been working up a sweat in other ways. 

He convinces Henry that he’s fine enough for a run, and this time, he’s more than fine with letting Henry be in the lead. Now it all makes sense to Alex, the strong reaction he had the first time he saw Henry running. Even with the fact that he’s now seen him naked with his mouth wrapped around Alex’s cock, somehow, running Henry is still getting Alex a bit worked up. He keeps scanning the area, wondering if there’s any spot he could duck in with Henry, if nothing else than just to kiss him. 

Henry turns around, giving Alex a look. “You okay?” 

“Yep!” 

“How’s the ankle?” 

“Fine!” Alex yells up to him. 

Henry looks unconvinced. “Then why are you so slow?” 

Alex pushes himself to close the distance between him and Henry. He whispers in his ear. “Maybe I was just checking you out the whole time,” he tells him before grinning and taking off. 

He looks back over his shoulder and sees Henry staring at his ass. Alex fights a grin and turns his head back. Even if he knows, it’s nice to have proof that Henry’s just as attracted to him. 

Just like every time they’ve left their room, which has been a good amount of times, they keep their hands to themselves, no matter how hard it is. But once they’re back in the room, Alex shoves Henry down on the couch and throws himself on top of him, kissing him deeply. Henry makes no protest, just holds on to him and kisses him back. 

That night, Alex convinces Henry after dinner that they should go hang out in the bar. It’s a hard sell, but Henry eventually agrees. Alex orders them some drinks and takes them back to their table. He doesn’t miss the fire in Henry’s eyes as Alex sits down. For a second, he wonders if it was a bad idea to spend time in a public place. Based on that look, all he wants to do is jump Henry. 

Henry makes a ‘hmmm’ sound as he takes a sip of his drink. “What’s in this?” 

“It’s a screwdriver. Orange juice and vodka.” Henry raises his eyebrows down at his glass, nodding slowly. “Why? Don’t like it?” 

“No,” he says with a shake of his head. “I just have an odd reaction to vodka. It’s no big deal.” 

Alex watches him, curious what he’s talking around. He doesn’t press him though. Maybe in time, Henry will loosen up and tell him more. 

He never does, but Alex doesn’t miss the way he all but throws himself against him and kisses him within an inch of his life when they’re back in the room. Before Alex can process it, he’s shoved up against a wall, Henry on his knees, fumbling desperately at his belt. Alex pants out his name too many times to count, hand wrapped in Henry’s hair as he’s brought to the edge faster than ever before. Alex slides down the wall and Henry scoots back, giving him room. Alex stares at him as he tries to catch his breath again. 

“Fuck,” he breathes. 

Henry just grins in reply, wiping his chin with the back of his hand. It takes all the strength he can muster, but Alex pulls Henry in and kisses him fiercely. 

But yet again that night, when Alex wakes up, Henry’s back is turned to him. 

It’s been a thing since the first night they shared the bed. Alex almost wonders if he just always sleeps on that side of his body. Quickly, he remembers that he hasn’t always been on that side of the bed, but he’s always facing away from Alex. It’s starting to bother him. At first, he didn’t care, he just cuddled in behind him and assumed the big spoon position. In fact, that’s what he’s done every night. But tonight, he dwells on the  _ why  _ of it. Henry’s never objected to waking up in Alex’s arms. Most mornings he’s rolled over and kissed him. But Alex wants to know why he does it. He’s almost tempted to just turn his own back, but he only has so much time left with Henry and then it’s just uncertain. So Alex sighs and curls in behind Henry. 

  
  


The next day, they’re planted on the couch, making out when Alex’s phone rings on the table. He opens one eye, breaking away from Henry. “Shit,” he pants. 

Henry moves to Alex’s neck, kissing a random path. 

“Hello?” Alex answers, trying not to sound breathy. 

“Alex, how’s your trip going?” 

“Uh, it’s good, Mom,” he replies, almost saying her title pointedly so Henry would stop. It has the desired effect as Henry pulls back and stares at him with wide eyes. 

“Good, good. I talked to June and she said she’s barely talked to you.” 

Alex stares at Henry with his swollen lips and messed up hair. He wonders why the hell his mother is calling him. “Yeah, I’ve just been trying to enjoy my vacation.” Henry grins, looking down at his lap. Alex’s eyes follow his and he sees the bulge there and pointedly looks away. 

“Well I hope you’re doing so.” 

Alex leans his head back on the couch. “Yeah, Mom, it’s been a good time so far.” 

“What have you been up to?” 

He fights the frustrated groan that’s at the tip of his tongue. “Uh, the usual. Swimming, hiking, running. I went parasailing one day. It’s been fun.” 

“Well, good. You deserve some time away,” she says, in seemingly no hurry. She’s the president for crying out loud. Doesn’t she have better things to do than shoot the shit with her son that’s on vacation? Alex looks over at Henry and knows that he has better things to be doing. 

“Yep, it’s been good,” he says, almost repeating himself. 

“Have you happened to run into anyone you know in Hawaii?” 

Alex’s eyes go wide at Henry as he processes his mother’s question. “What do you mean?” he asks, hoping his voice is steady. 

“Just curious. I know you chose a popular resort. I didn’t know if maybe there were any other people you knew there?” 

“Mom, you clearly have some question you’re talking around. Why don’t you just come out and ask?” 

There’s a small sigh on the other end of the line. “There was a picture of you and Prince Henry that was circulating on Twitter, apparently.” 

Alex looks back over at Henry, a bit of panic rising in him. “A picture of me and Henry?” Alex asks, his voice a bit nervous. Henry’s expression adjusts to match his. “What was it a picture of?” 

“It was just the two of you running or something on the beach,” she tells him. “But it was surprising considering you’ve gone on record to say you hate Prince Henry.” 

Alex fights the laugh that almost bubbles out of him. “Yeah, don’t worry, Henry’s still the worst,” Alex lies. He doesn’t miss the look on Henry’s face at his comment. He leans in and resumes his kisses against Alex’s neck, this time with teeth. Alex has to bite down on the sound ready to come from him. “I just...uh...ran into Henry. And we...well...we decided to set aside our hatred for a week.” Henry pulls back and grins at him. “Just, you know, so we didn’t ruin each other’s vacations.” 

“So you’ve been spending time with him?” 

Alex watches Henry as he lies to his mother. “Only a couple of times. We ran together and then ran into each other in the lobby. Not like a lot of time together or anything.” Henry leans back in, but Alex puts his hand against his face and pushes him back, giving him a warning glare. Henry laughs behind his own hand. 

“Gotcha. I just wanted to make sure we were avoiding any potential international scandals or fights.” 

“Don’t worry, Mom. No international fights will be had. We’re being completely civil.” Henry smirks and looks away. Alex doesn’t acknowledge the potential international scandal that could be leaked if anyone knew what they were  _ really  _ up to. 

“Glad to hear it.” She sighs on the other end of the line. “I miss you. I’m glad you’ll be home soon.” 

That’s when it hits Alex, just how soon his trip is ending. “Yeah, I’ll see you in a couple days.” 

“Okay. Bye, sugar.” 

“Bye, Mom.” 

He hangs up his phone and slowly places it back on the table. “Doing damage control?” Henry asks. 

Alex doesn’t answer. Instead, he leans forward and kisses Henry. It’s softer than before, filled with his uncertainty at what comes next. Henry returns the kiss, running his fingers through Alex’s curls. Maybe he wonders what will happen next too. 

  
  


Later that night, Alex wanders into the bedroom after his shower and he sees Henry packing. “What are you doing?” 

He doesn’t look up as he organizes his suitcase. “Well, tomorrow’s our last day, so I thought I’d do this now, rather than having to devote time to it tomorrow.” Alex watches him, but sees nothing giving away Henry’s thoughts. 

“Sure, makes sense.” 

Alex walks off toward the living area, attempting to do the same. He wonders what Henry wants. Never in a million years would Alex have ever thought this, but he doesn’t really want things to be  _ over  _ between him and Henry. Things are too good. He’s never felt this  _ good  _ with someone before. It has to mean something. Right? 

He walks over to the door separating the two rooms and opens his mouth to say something, but retreats wordlessly. If Henry noticed he was there, he never says anything. Alex keeps going back and forth between trying to pack and trying to decide what to say to Henry. 

Alex thinks of all the times he’s seen Henry in the last five years. Admittedly, it hasn’t been  _ that  _ many. He doesn’t want that to still be the standard. Even if they aren’t throwing themselves at each other when they’re together, he still likes this new Henry he’s discovered. He’s a good guy and Alex thinks —if nothing else— they could be friends. 

Maybe Henry won’t agree. Maybe he’ll just want to go back to England and never speak of it again. 

Alex just needs to know. One way or another, he needs to ask Henry so he can have an answer. 

He strides over to the door again and leans against the doorjamb. Henry’s suitcase is nearly finished, but he still hasn’t looked up at Alex. 

Alex finally speaks. “Do you ever have to go to those stupid world leaders functions?” Henry looks up, a confused expression on his face. “You know, the galas, the fundraisers, the talks on things that could be interesting but are usually boring?” 

A small grin crosses his face as he looks back at his suitcase. “Yes. In March, I went to a talk in Germany on wind power. It was as scintillating as it sounds.”

“I usually try to get out of them,” Alex admits. He watches Henry for a moment. “Maybe I won’t now.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Well, I mean, if you’re going to be there, maybe I should go to them.” That gets Henry’s attention. “You know, it’d be more interesting that way.” 

Henry is silent for a concerningly long time. “You mean...you’d want to go because I’d be there?” 

Alex stares at him for a second. “Well yeah.” 

“Do you…” he stops, shaking his head to himself. “You’d actually want to see me after this?” 

Alex is almost taken aback. “Of course I would! Do you not want to see me?” 

Henry shakes his head and Alex misreads it until he speaks. “Of course I’d want to see you. I just...well, I suppose I thought that this was just a vacation fling to you.” He says the end without meeting Alex’s eyes. 

“Is that what you really thought?” 

Henry sighs, his shoulders sagging. “Well, sort of. I mean, you came here hating me. We’ve had quite the turn around. I couldn’t be sure what you wanted from this.” 

“Is that what you wanted? Just a vacation fling?” 

“No,” Henry insists.

“Is that why you always tried to turn away from me at night?” Alex asks. Henry makes a shocked face. “Yeah, I noticed.” 

Henry looks embarrassed, but nods. 

“I want to see you again,” Alex says. “You know, you could have just asked me.” 

Henry laughs. “Yeah, probably.” He watches Alex for a long beat. “You’d really want to see me again?” 

Alex grins, stepping forward until he’s right in front of Henry. He puts his hands on either side of Henry’s face. He can go in two directions here. Ultimately, he decides to go the lighter route, the easier route. His face is close to Henry’s when he says, “No one’s ever given me a blowjob like you.” 

A laugh bursts from Henry before Alex kisses him. Henry’s arms immediately close around Alex, pulling him closer. Alex breaks away and shoves Henry’s suitcase to the floor, some of the contents spilling out. 

“Alex!” Henry whines. 

Alex ignores him, shoving him down on the bed and climbing on top of him. “I’ll help you clean it up later,” he promises before he fits his mouth back to Henry’s. Somehow, knowing that they both want to continue this, it makes it the most intense it’s ever been. 

They’re laying in bed afterward, Alex’s head on Henry’s chest. Henry’s playing absently with his curls. “Hey, er, how would you feel about a trip to L.A.?” 

Alex picks up his head and looks at him. “What do you mean?”

“Well, in a couple of weeks, Pez and I have this charity event that we’re going to. Maybe...I dunno, maybe you could join us.” 

“Yeah?” Alex asks, a smile spreading across his face. 

“Yeah,” Henry says. “I think Bea might be there. You could bring June and Nora.” 

“Well that sounds like a fun group.” 

“Mmhmm.” 

“And then, you know, you and I can…you know,” Alex says awkwardly. 

Henry grins, reaching up to bring Alex’s face closer to his. “My thoughts exactly.” He closes the distance between them and kisses Alex deeply. 

Suddenly, the end of the trip doesn’t seem so uncertain. In fact, he might even be excited for the next part. Who knows what thin reasons could get one of them across the ocean? Alex is willing to figure it out. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for all the comments on the last chapter! I hope you enjoyed this one too!


	11. The Return

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here is the last chapter! I hope you enjoy it!

Alex lays his head on Henry’s shoulder, curling up next to him on the plane. Henry reaches out and holds his hand, leaning his head against Alex’s. 

“I can’t believe you’re taking us back to Hawaii,” Alex says. 

Henry chuckles. “You graduated. I thought that was how we celebrated you graduating — with the two of us going to Hawaii.” 

Alex laughs and looks up at him. “I don’t think  _ one  _ time makes it a tradition.” 

“Well this is me making it a tradition. Should you end up with a third degree, we’ll go then too.” 

Alex grins and leans back into Henry. It’s so different this time from the last time. For one, he’s purposely going on this vacation with Henry. He knows they’re going to be staying in one room, going to be doing the whole vacation together. 

The last four years since Hawaii have been mind blowing to say the least. When he was on the plane there the first time, Alex never could have guessed that he’d end up keeping up a secret international relationship with the prince before they were ultimately outed by his mom’s political rival, and then would move in with him in New York City while he went to law school. The last thing he could have ever expected is that he’d have fallen so deeply in love with him. But here he is, curled around the love of his life. 

He feels Henry plant a kiss in his hair as he starts to drift off. He tightens his arm around Henry’s waist and lets sleep take him. 

Henry kisses him awake when they’re landed in Hawaii. It’s the same way Henry wakes him up on lazy weekends on the occasion that Henry wakes up first. Alex grins into it and hums. “We’re here?” 

“We are. Get your lazy bum up so we can get off this plane.” 

Alex laughs and stands up, stretching his arms over his head. “Yes, sir.” Henry rolls his eyes and leads the way to the door. They’re shuttled from the airstrip to the hotel — the same one they stayed in last time. Alex watches the view as they drive around the island. He reaches over without looking and links his hand with Henry’s. He feels Henry lifting their joined hands and looks over right as Henry kisses the back of his hand. 

The check in process is much easier than the last time. There are no fights over double-booked rooms, just two men, eagerly waiting for their vacation to start. Henry takes the keys from the clerk and leads them off to the elevators. It’s all so familiar. Alex grins as he looks around the lobby, following Henry. 

When they’re in the elevator, Alex doesn’t even question it at first when Henry presses the button for the top floor. He hadn’t really been paying attention during check in, so he had no idea where they were staying. He follows Henry down a familiar path, but he stops two doors short of theirs. 

“You didn’t!” 

Henry looks over at him with a confused look. “What?” 

“Did you get us the same room as last time?” 

A small grin spreads across his face. “I might have…” 

Alex laughs and walks toward him. “You sentimental sap!” 

Henry puts in the key and frowns. “What? It was a nice room.” He walks inside, letting Alex follow behind him. 

Closing the door behind them, Alex reaches out and grabs Henry’s hand. He pulls him closer, til they’re nearly nose to nose. “You’re right. It was a nice room.” They both grin before Alex closes the distance between them. 

When they break apart, Alex goes straight to the bedroom and throws himself down on the bed. Henry stands in the doorway to the bedroom, his arms crossed and an amused look on his face. “Is this you claiming the bed this time? I rather imagined we’d share it.” 

Alex sits up and gestures for Henry to come closer. “That was exactly my plan as well,” he tells him, pulling him in by his shirt. Henry leans down, cupping Alex’s face and kissing him deeply.

Alex breaks away and crawls back on the bed. Henry follows him, kissing him again, pressing him down into the mattress. Alex wraps his arms around him. They kiss until Alex interrupts them by pulling off Henry’s shirt. Henry smirks and works at getting Alex’s off as well. His hand is down his pants and Alex can’t stop the moan that rips from him. He shoves Alex’s pants down as he kisses his way down his body. Alex can’t help but gasp when his mouth closes around him. His hand is in Henry’s hair as he works him. His head is thrown back, crying out at the ceiling. Glancing back down, he sees Henry watching him. They hold fierce eye contact until Alex closes his eyes and yells out Henry’s name as he finishes. 

He’s laying there boneless and feels Henry move up next to him. Alex isn’t sure how, but he lifts up his arm, letting Henry curl in next to him. He places a kiss on the underside of Alex’s jaw. 

“I guess we’re officially on vacation,” Henry jokes. 

Alex laughs. “Like that’s never happened with us just walking in the door of our own home.” 

He can feel Henry laugh against his chest. “Fair enough.” 

“Do you remember the time you got home from two weeks in England?” 

Henry hums with a smile. “Fondly.” 

Alex laughs and kisses his head. “So you planned this trip. What’s on the agenda?” 

Henry picks up his head and moves so he’s leaning on Alex’s chest and looking at him. “Well, later today, I thought we could go on a hike.” 

He grins. “Any specific place we’re hiking?” 

Henry plants a kiss on his chest. “I feel like you know.” They share a look. “So I’m afraid you can’t go parasailing today. Can’t risk another bloody ankle injury.” 

Alex chuckles. “Yeah that doesn’t need to happen again.” 

Eventually, they move and get dressed again and leave their room, though both of them do so reluctantly. The last few weeks were a marathon of deadlines for law school and duties at the shelter. They saw each other mostly in passing and when Henry forced Alex to sit for an actual meal before going back to studying. They also know that this summer will be filled with Alex studying for the bar. This trip is their chance to spend some real quality time together. 

They go to the beach, not running, but just walking. Henry reaches out and takes Alex’s hand, and even though they’ve been openly together for over 3 years, it still feels like a big deal. The last time, he didn’t feel like he could even  _ touch  _ Henry outside of the room. Now, here they are, in an honest to god relationship, holding hands as they walk on the beach. It feels perfect. Coming back to Hawaii was a great idea on Henry’s part. 

The hike up the mountain is another revelation. Alex smiles to himself as he remembers how conflicted he’d felt the last time, wondering how he really felt about Henry. He reaches out and takes his hand, sharing his smile with Henry. He squeezes his hand back and they continue their walk. Alex tries to bug Henry about all the things he has planned for them, other than this. Henry is being annoyingly tight-lipped about it all. It’s the same way he was when he packed Alex a bag and wouldn’t tell him where they were going until they were on the plane. 

When they reach the vista — the same as before — Alex is in awe once again. Even though he has pictures, he still thinks he forgot how beautiful it is. He looks over and Henry has the same look on his face. Alex kisses his cheek before he wraps his arm around him and tucks into his side. Henry holds him there. 

The sun is setting, throwing the world into a golden light. Alex pulls out his phone and is taking a picture when he feels Henry step away from him. He’s lining up the right shot so he figures Henry’s doing the same thing. Alex nods approvingly at his picture before he looks over at Henry. But he’s not taking a picture. 

He’s down on one knee. 

Alex breathes out a gasp, gaping at him while Henry smiles almost shyly back up at him. “Are you —?”

Henry kind of nods. “Alex, this is the place where I finally found the courage to show you how I feel. I thought it was only appropriate to bring you back here so I could find the courage to tell you that I want to spend the rest of my life with you. You are the greatest thing that has ever happened to me. I love you so bloody much and nothing brings me more joy than just being with you.” 

Alex hates that he’s crying. He has a ridiculously large smile on his face. Henry glances away from him for a moment to pull a ring out of his pocket. 

“Alex Claremont-Diaz,” he pauses, taking a deep breath, looking at Alex with an insane amount of love in his eyes, “will you marry me?” 

Alex doesn’t hesitate. “Yes!” He goes down to his knees and kisses Henry deeply, wrapping his arms around him. Alex pulls back, shaking his head in awe at him. “I love you so much.” 

Henry leans his forehead against Alex’s. “I love you too,” he nearly whispers, so much emotion in his voice. He stands up and extends an arm to Alex, helping him up before pulling him in and kissing him again. 

When they break apart, Henry grabs Alex’s left hand and slides the ring on his finger. Alex stares at it, smiling so hard it hurts. He wraps his arms around Henry, just holding him. “Everything you said,” he tells Henry, “I feel that about you too.” He feels Henry kiss his cheek before he steps back. Alex is about to say something else when loud screams pour from the trees behind them. 

He startles, jumping in front of Henry, trying to protect him. It takes him a second to realize the screams are coming from people he knows. And they’re not screams — they’re cheers. He sees June and Nora running toward him. They’re hugging him and he notes Pez and Bea joining the celebration. 

“You’re all here?” he asks, completely gobsmacked. 

“Henry invited us,” Bea tells him. “He thought we’d all need to celebrate properly.” 

“And believe us, we will be,” Pez says with a wink. 

Alex laughs, staring at them all in his surprise. 

“By the way, Alex, I think it’s really nice that when you think there’s a threat, you throw yourself in front of Henry,” Pez tells. 

Alex hadn’t even thought of it. It was just instinct. He looks at Henry and shrugs. 

“Aww, you’re gonna make such a good husband,” Nora teases. 

Alex tucks back into Henry’s side and wraps his arm around his waist. “You’re damn right I will be.” 

They all continue their celebrating down the mountain. Alex’s hand is in Henry’s the whole time. Their friends follow them to their room where an astounding amount of champagne is waiting for the five people who will drink it. Alex can’t believe how much secret planning Henry put into everything. He could have asked him anywhere, any way and Alex would have said yes. But just the same, he’s glad it was here, where it all started. He doesn’t stray much from Henry’s side as they keep toasting and drinking. 

At one point, Alex leans into him and whispers, “They all have other rooms, right?” 

Henry laughs and whispers back to him. “I’m not a bloody idiot.” 

Alex shrugs, chuckling a bit. “Just making sure  _ we  _ can celebrate properly too.” He sees the look on Henry’s face and it makes him want to drag him back into the bedroom, but that wouldn’t be proper form with their sisters and friends in the other room. 

“Oh my god,” Alex says, “I get it now. This is why you were being so cagey every time I asked you what else you had planned for us!” 

Henry nods as he takes a drink. “Well, yes.” He wrinkles his nose. “Were you mad at me?” 

Alex shakes his head. “Maybe annoyed, but not mad.” He stands up only to plant himself in Henry’s lap, wrapping his arms around Henry’s neck. “I could never be mad at my fiancé.” 

Henry rolls his eyes with a grin, but leans in and kisses him soundly. Their friends clink their glasses and tease them, but they don’t listen. 

They’re too wrapped up in the happiest day of their lives. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for the kind comments and kudos! This was a fun story to write and I hope it was fun to read as well!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! Let me know what you think! 
> 
> Feel free to chat with me on tumblr. I'm three-drink-amy!


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